


Let It Rather Be A Moving Sea

by bookwyrrm



Category: The Infernal Devices Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Little Mermaid Elements, Multi, The Little Mermaid AU, Threesome - F/M/M, fairytale AU, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-07
Updated: 2018-09-19
Packaged: 2019-07-06 03:53:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 25,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15877986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bookwyrrm/pseuds/bookwyrrm
Summary: “Never seen a mermaid before?” Will asked.“Never seen a human before?” Tessa shot back, and Jem laughed.Tessa Gray is shipwrecked on the way to an arranged marriage and discovers a new world.





	1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> “Let there be spaces in your togetherness, And let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one another but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls." -- Khalil Gibran

“There’s a storm coming.”

“Yes. Do the men know?”

“Begging your pardon, cap’n, but anyone with eyes knows by now. Look at those thunderclouds. It’ll be a nasty one.”

“No doubt. Excuse me, Miss Gray!”

The young woman he had called to turned around. “Yes, Captain?”

“You might want to stay in your cabin tonight, Miss Gray. We’re going to get some rain.”

Tessa glanced up at the black sky wryly. “You don’t say.”

“Now, Miss, I don’t want you to worry. We’ll get you there safe and sound, just like I promised your brother.”

She nodded. “Thank you.”

Once she had left, the captain turned to look at his companion. “Prepare for a rough night. Tell the men to be ready for a bad one.”

The first mate looked up again at the sky and quietly said a prayer.

 

“There’s a storm coming.”

Will twisted in the water. “James, your powers of observation astonish me.”

Jem made a face. “I’m just saying, we should be careful.”

“No, you’re right. And you’re certain Charlotte doesn’t know we’re here?”

“If she knew,” Jem remarked, “we’d be back under the surface with her whip pinning our tails down for a week.”

A wind buffeted the two mermen, their oxygen-breathing lungs grateful for the exercise as they floated with torsos above the water, watching the sky.

“How much will you give me if I breach in front of that ship?” Will elbowed Jem in the side.

Thunder rumbled overhead.

“I’ll take two of your patrols if you do it and manage not to get struck by lightning.”

“We patrol together, kelphead.”

Jem laughed, and as always, the sound made Will grin.

“How about you do it now, live to tell the tale, and we’ll decide payment after?”

Will glanced up at the sky again, which was now starting to sweat fat droplets of rain. “Deal.”

He vanished beneath the waves, with Jem following, to get closer to the ship.

 

Tessa was startled by the feeling of rain on her face, and even more startled by the glint of light that had flashed at the corner of her eye. It looked like glistening scales, but she couldn’t imagine what kind of fish would be such a ridiculous color.

She turned back to look, leaning over the railing. To her astonished eyes, a boy rose out of the water in a graceful arc — no, not a boy, because where there should have been legs was a large blue tail. Tessa gaped.

Glancing up briefly, the mermaid caught her gaze. His mouth fell open in surprise, mirroring hers. They stared at each other, startled blue eyes locking onto startled gray ones, before he fell back into the sea.

Will coughed up water as he surfaced next to Jem.

“You know you’re supposed to close your mouth when you dive back in, right?” Jem eyed him with concern. “What happened?”

“I don’t know!” Will’s gills flared. “A human saw me.”

“Really? What’d he look like?”

“No, a girl. She looked normal, I couldn’t see her legs. She was wearing one of those long dresses.”

Jem’s eyebrows raised with interest. “Want to follow the ship a little more?”

Will shrugged amiably. “Why not?”

 

The rain had started to come down in full force, pounding on the ship and tossing it back and forth into the wind’s malevolent hands. The deck was slick and dangerous, and Tessa watched as part of a sail was suddenly torn free. She clung to the rail, worried that if she tried to walk she would slip.

The captain called out, “Miss Gray! Get belowdecks!” He reached out to her.  

Tessa turned to obey, letting go of the rail, then many things happened all at once.

Someone yelled as lightning crashed into the top of the mast.

The ship tipped and kept tipping.

Tessa was pitched over the side.

She flew screaming through the air. Her body hit the ocean with a smack.

The water enveloped her and Tessa Gray blacked out.

\--

 

Tessa blinked awake, or tried to. There was sand in her eyes. There was sand in her mouth. Tessa wondered briefly if she had been reincarnated as a beach.

Slowly, her limbs came to life as well, very clearly complaining of their aches. Tessa groaned.

“See?” someone said. “I knew she wasn’t dead.”

Tessa bolted upright. She was lying on a beach, facing the water... which currently had two people floating in it.

The one who had just spoken continued. “Good morning. James thought you were dead.”

“I don’t know much about humans,” The other one admitted. “But in my defense, you looked very dead.”

“You!” Tessa croaked, pointing to the first boy. She cleared her throat. “You’re the one I saw! You’re a…”

“That’s right.” The boy grinned at her, his vowels warm and lush. Behind him, a tail rose out of the water — _his_ tail — a deep, radiant blue.

Tessa looked at his companion, who had the almond-shaped eyes of some of her brother’s trading partners. “And you, are you one too?”

“A mermaid? Yes, I am.” His accent was neat and precise, sounding almost like Mortmain’s but much kinder. He smiled at her hesitantly.

“Come on, Jem. I showed her mine, now you show her yours.” The blue-eyed boy smirked.

The other one rolled his eyes, but swam closer to the shore. He pulled himself into the shallows and raised his tail out of the water. Tessa gazed at his tail, a light green similar to the pendant around his neck. In the sun, its scales glinted silver.

Tessa had always hated book heroines who swooned, but now she found herself sighing in awe. “It’s gorgeous. Oh, you’re so lucky.”

“We’re lucky? You’ve got _legs_.”

She smiled at him. “I’m Tessa.”

“Jem. Over there is Will.”

Will drew himself up beside Jem, and she took the opportunity to inspect them.

Both were shirtless (Tessa caught herself blushing), their muscular frames drawn on with strange black markings. Rough slashes on their torsos indicated their gills, although right now in the open air the gills were closed. The boys’ chests rising and falling just like Tessa’s, and she guessed that their human lungs were doing the work.

Floating next to each other, they were a stunning pair. Her eyes were drawn to Will, whose dark hair and tail provided a stunning contrast to his light skin. He was handsome and clearly knew it. He smiled as Tessa locked eyes with him — eyes which, she was surprised to discover, were the exact shade of blue as the tail glistening in the sun.

Tessa looked at the other merman. Jem was more slender than Will, although his arms were still corded with wiry muscle. He was darker than Will and Tessa, and his black hair hung down to brush his eyes. The longer she looked at Jem, the more she noticed the fine features of his face, the attractiveness of his wrists. He was pleasant to look at, and Tessa thought that she could look for a long time and not get tired of it.

As she studied them, she noticed that they were doing the same to her. It was odd being stared at, but there was no malice in their gazes, only open curiosity.

“Never seen a mermaid before?” Will asked.

“Never seen a human before?” Tessa shot back, and Jem laughed.

Will smiled, surprised. “I haven’t, as a matter of fact. But if the rest of them are like you, I wouldn’t mind meeting a few more.”

“Will,” Jem groaned.

Grinning, Will turned to look at Jem, and they had a silent conversation. Tessa watched them, feeling awkward.

“So, are you going to kill me?” Tessa asked.

They looked aghast.

“Now why in Raziel’s name would we do that?” Will demanded.

“I’ve read books,” Tessa said defiantly. “I know about sirens. Beautiful mer-creatures who lure sailors to their death.”

“Ah,” Jem said. “We are not sirens.”

Will scoffed. “The very thought! Sirens are our distant cousins. They lure humans into the water to eat them and embarrass the rest of us more evolved creatures.”

“Oh. You don’t kill humans?” Tessa asked.

“Humans try to kill us _,_ ” Jem said, his voice calm and even. Then he glanced at Will and said, “Although to be fair, Jessamine is always bragging about how a sailor once leapt into the water to get close to her enchanting singing.”

Will snorted. “Have you _heard_ Jessamine sing? Not likely. Unless the poor sot heard a few bars and figured death was the only escape.”

“I thought you didn’t like sirens,” Tessa put in. “Why does this Jessamine brag about acting like one?”

Will regarded Tessa. “Nothing gets past you, does it? I suppose Jessie thinks it’s romantic, but she’s never had a lot of sense.”

Tessa shifted the way she sat, crossing her legs, and saw the mermaids’ attention snap to them. They were still covered by her dress, and the boys peered at the outline of her legs underneath the fabric.   

“Um, this is an odd request,” Will began. “But…”

Tessa said, “Do you want to see my legs?”

She blushed at her own forwardness, but the mermaids didn’t seem to notice.

“Yes!” Will said excitedly. “It’s just that we’ve never seen a leg up close before.”

She smiled and kicked her feet out. Ignoring Aunt Harriet’s voice yelling in her head about propriety, Tessa pushed her dress up over her knees.

They stared hard enough that she began to feel embarrassed again. Jem reached out tentatively.

“Can I touch them?”

“Yes,” Tessa said. “But can I touch your tail?”

“Here,” Will said, and scooted closer. “This way Jem doesn’t have to twist himself into knots.”

Will’s tail felt like a fish tail, but it was larger and twitched under Tessa’s fingers. She laughed delightedly as Will grinned and Jem cautiously ran his hands around her calves.

When Jem’s hands reached her thighs, Tessa’s skin tingled and she broke off the conversation she was having with Will.

“Oh,” she said. “Um, would you mind? It’s just… humans are sensitive there.”

Jem instantly withdrew his hands, looking horrified. “I am so sorry.”

“No! It’s okay, it’s not a bad feeling! I would just rather you not…”

“I understand,” Jem said, and apologized again.

They avoided each other’s eyes. Tessa felt herself blushing and a quick glance up told her that Jem was too.

“What are those strange markings on your skin?” Tessa asked, changing the subject. “Tattoos?”

“No, runes,” Will said. “We draw them on to give us advantages in combat, or for other reasons.” He pointed to the markings on his arm. “This lets us speak with other creatures. This one here is swiftness, and here on my shoulder is for strength.”

Tessa indicated the rune on Will’s heart. “What’s that one?”

He smiled. “That one isn’t temporary. It’s my _parabatai_ rune.”

“Your what?”

“A _parabatai_ is someone you trust with your life, who fights alongside you in battle, and is closer than family. By choosing to undergo the _parabatai_ ritual you’re bound to another person for the rest of your life.”

“That certainly seems… intense.”

Jem showed Tessa a matching rune on his shoulder. “It is intense, but it was the best decision of my life.”

“Huh.” She looked between them. “It sounds a bit like a marriage.”

Will laughed. “I’ve never thought of it that way, but I suppose you’re right. What do you think about that, Jem? Can’t divorce your _parabatai_ , you’re stuck with me!”     

“Raziel, have mercy,” Jem chuckled. He said to Tessa, “We are free to marry other people, though.”

“Hm,” Tessa said. She stored this fact about their relationship in her mind to think over later. “What are the other runes that you have?”

The two Mer diligently listed them for her, going through all of Jem’s and ending on Will’s memory rune.

“Makes him a good storyteller,” Jem said. “I’m always telling him he should become an author--”

“But _I_ say that’s plagiarizing,” Will interjected. “Because I’m just re-telling the books that I’ve read with some differences.”

“Well, what about your songs?” Jem said, teasing. “You’ve always told me those are Will Herondale originals.”

“Ah, so they are.” Will looked at Tessa. “I am a fantastic songwriter. Would you like a demonstration?”

“Um…”

Behind Will, Jem was shaking his head ‘no’ at Tessa.

She grinned. “Absolutely!”

Will launched into a song. “ _Demon pox, oh demon pox!_ ” and Tessa began to laugh.  

She and Jem applauded loudly when the song was over, and Will took an extravagant bow.

“I’ll tell you a story, if you want,” Will said, watching Tessa. His eyes were soft. “If you don’t mind us staying with you.”

“I don’t want to be an inconvenience. But… yes, I would like that.” Tessa said quietly, “I don’t want to be alone.”

Jem said, “You won’t be.”

She smiled at them gratefully.

“Which one will you tell?” Jem asked Will, settling back on a pile of seaweed.

Will cleared his throat. “We have a story about a mermaid who fell in love with a human prince. She begged a warlock to give her legs so she could go on land and win the prince’s heart.”

“Oh, I know this story!” Tessa said. “We tell it, too.”

Will looked at her steadily. “Then you know it doesn’t end well.”

Tessa knew two endings to the tale: one where the pair lived happily ever after, and one withheld from younger children.

She said, “The prince ended up marrying someone else. The mermaid almost killed him but took her own life instead. However, because she spared the prince’s life, her soul turned into a star and got to be with the rest of the human souls.”

Will scoffed. “Because she was human when she took her own life, her soul wasn’t able to turn to seafoam with the rest of her kind. Instead she was trapped in the sky. It’s a cautionary tale about falling in love with humans.”

There was a silence.

Jem said, “By the Angel, Will, that’s depressing. Can’t you think of a happier story?”

“I wanted to choose one that Tessa might know!” Will said defensively. “But since you requested it, James… this is the legend of how sea creatures were formed.”

Tessa leaned back and listened. Will described the angel Raziel, caught in a battle against evil, spilling a drop of his blood to create the sea and plucking a scale from his wings to fill the sea with life.

Will’s voice was smooth and sure, rising dramatically at all the right parts. Jem had been right, Tessa thought. Will _was_ a good storyteller.

With the two Mer by her side, she listened to the story as the sun dipped over the horizon into the sea.

\--

 

They told Charlotte about the human girl, partly because lying to Charlotte always left Will and Jem with soul-eating guilt and also because there could actually be trouble with the Clave if they got caught interacting with a human.

Charlotte eyed her charges wearily from behind her desk. Although Will was reunited with his family, she had raised him when he had fled from them, believing himself to be cursed. Jem had joined their house not long after, newly orphaned and still recovering from torture by a Greater Demon. Jessamine was their age as well, and Charlotte had taken her in because Jessie had nowhere else to go.

Together, they had formed a dysfunctional family. Charlotte, struggling to prove herself as a leader to the outside world and in her home. Henry, her husband, who had been left crippled after a tough battle and was constantly inventing new gadgets and devices for him to get around. Jessamine, broken and lonely and snapping at Will. Will, snapping at Jessamine and everyone else, thinking that he would bring ruin upon any who loved him. Jem, a gentle force who brought happiness to Will but ignored his own inner demons.

They were all grown up now. Will had his family back, and Jem had grown confident and even kinder despite all his troubles. In the battle, the pair was something to behold. Their _parabatai_ bond was one of the strongest Charlotte had ever seen. But she still felt affection for them as though they were her own children, as strong as her affection for the life currently growing inside her.

Humans were dangerous, and the Clave forbid exposure to humans for good reason. But Will and Jem were smart, and Charlotte found herself agreeing to let them stay with the girl.

Charlotte realized  that even if she had disagreed, Will and Jem would continue going to Tessa Gray’s island anyway. It was clear that they were already fond of the human, so the only thing Charlotte could do was give them her permission for a day or two and wish them caution.

 

Tessa’s second day on the island passed in much of the same as her first. She talked for hours with Will and Jem, as the mermaids and the human were intensely curious about each other’s cultures. Will told stories, and Tessa did too, ending in a heated debate between them about literary tactics.

Tessa found that she could not ignore her stomach any longer, which growled loudly and demanded food. Jem caught and gutted fish for her, moving silently and swiftly like a hawk through the water. She tried to eat, although her mind protested at eating it raw. But she was hungry, and her baser instincts won out.

As the days passed, she would get used to fish and crab, and sometimes shellfish if the boys brought it to her. Although she hesitated at the raw fish the first time, she recognized that she was lucky to have Will and Jem with her, as she would certainly die much sooner without them.

\--

 

They had spent the night next to her, lying half onto the shore, tails safe in the shallows and upper bodies resting on mud. Will and Jem had promised Charlotte that they would patrol their normal routes in the morning, and so they had left Tessa when the sun came up, promising to be back soon.

But when they returned later in the afternoon, the beach was deserted.

“Tessa?” Will called out, alarm present in his voice. “Tess?”

Jem searched the beach for footprints, but if the human girl had left any trace, the wind had blown sand around and covered it up.

“Tessa, are you there?” Jem added his voice to Will’s.

“I’m here!” They heard her say, and presently she came trooping around a clump of trees, smiling when she saw them.

Will heaved a sigh of relief. Out of the corner of his eye he saw tension leaving Jem’s shoulders. It was funny -- they had only met this human yesterday, but the thought of anything happening to her filled him with dread.

“What’s wrong?” Jem asked, and Will noticed the redness of Tessa’s eyes, her face puffy like she had been crying.

She blinked quickly a few times. “It’s nothing.”

“Where were you when we came?” Will said.

She sat down on the mud. “Oh, I went to explore the island.”

“Tessa, that could have been dangerous,” Jem said. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

“Well, the two of you can’t do it,” Tessa snapped, and instantly regretted it as hurt flashed across Jem’s face. “I’m sorry Jem, I didn’t mean to be so harsh, truly. It’s just… there’s _nothing._ I walked around the whole island -- it’s barely bigger than my aunt’s house.”

“Did you find any water?” Will said.

“No.” Tessa indicated the scraggly mess of undergrowth behind her. “Just bushes and vines.”

“Oh, Tessa. It’ll be okay,” Will said, reaching out for her.

Tessa allowed him to pull her into his arms. The coolness of the salt water on her feet was a welcome shock to her system. She focused on steadying her breath to the rhythm of the waves. In her ear, Will was murmuring reassurances that Tessa only half-heard, her mind far away. Distantly she felt Jem begin to rub slow circles on her ankle.

“Tessa?” said Jem.

“I’m going to die,” Tessa said calmly.

“Don’t say--” Will started.

“No, I’ve accepted it. Without water I _will_ die. I mean, of course I was upset.” She squared her shoulders and drew back from them. “But dying surrounded by two people who care for me is better than marriage to Mortmain.”

The mermen looked at each other. They themselves had tried to think of ways to keep Tessa alive, throwing back and forth half-baked ideas, not wanting to discuss the inevitable. But she was right. There had been no sign of a ship, and the sky showed no sign of raining. The lack of fresh water ensured humans could not survive.

“Your people die too, don’t they?” Tessa asked.

Will said, “Yes. We live longer than humans, but we still die.”

“Unless there’s an accident,” Jem said.

He looked at Will, and Tessa saw sadness in their eyes. “What kind of accident?”

“My older sister was killed by humans.” Will said. “They wanted her scales. It was my fault.”

“It _wasn’t_ ,” Jem said fiercely. Although his voice was quiet, his tone was intense enough that Tessa realized they must have had this conversation a million times.

Will shook his head. “I made Ella swim out with me and Cecily, my younger sister. I wanted to see a whale, but a whaling ship found us first.”

Horrified, Tessa placed a hand on Will’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry.”

Will shrugged, staring at the sand. “Jem’s story is worse.”

“It’s not a competition,” said Jem. Then, to Tessa’s questioning look, he explained. “I used to live much further from here. A kraken destroyed my home and killed my parents after my mother found its nest. Charlotte, who heads the clan around here, knew my father and took me in.”

“Dear lord,” Tessa gasped. “That’s so awful.”

“It is,” Jem said. “They were warriors, and they knew their life would be dangerous. But that didn’t ease my grief for them.”

Tessa laid the side of her head against Jem’s, hoping to convey her sympathy. She felt him smile.

She changed the subject. “What about your tails? They’re so beautiful, but does it denote heritage? Do all the members of your family, Will, have the same color tail as you?”

“I think it can show who you’re related to, yes, but it doesn’t have to. Often babies will be born with the same color tail that one of their ancestors or parents had, but sometimes it seems to be random.” He laughed. “My father has the same tail that Cecily and I do, and Ella… she did as well. But my mother’s is red.”

“My mother had a similar tail to me,” Jem put in. “Although hers was a darker shade of green.”

“That’s amazing,” Tessa said. “I wish I had a tail.”

“But you have legs! And joints in your knees!” He reached out a hand towards them, but stopped. “I’m sorry, you told me not to.”

“You can.” Tessa took his hand and pushed it gently to her leg.

“But earlier you said--”

She blushed. “I changed my mind.”

Jem blushed too, but held her gaze steadily. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

Tentatively, Jem placed his palm right above her knee. The feeling of his fingers tracing over her kneecap sent shivers through Tessa as she turned to Will.

“I was thinking,” she said, loud enough for both to hear. “Since I am going to die… I have never been kissed.”

Jem’s hands froze in their careful exploration of Tessa’s thighs. Tessa caught Will’s gaze defiantly.

There was sand in her hair, which dried saltwater made into a wild mane around her head. Will thought that she looked like some kind of goddess, staring at him and lifting her chin stubbornly, daring him to kiss her. He gulped.

“You know those stories,” Tessa said. She made a face. “The poor virgin shipwrecked, pure even in death. Like Ophelia. I don’t want to be one of those stories.”

Will didn’t know who Ophelia was, but he couldn’t find it in him to ask. “The outside world will make up fantastic stories about you all the same, Tess. They won’t know if you died virtuous or not.”

“But _I_ will know. And if some priest ever tells stories about me to scare girls into behaving, I will be in the afterlife laughing.” Her eyes were dark and mischievous. “Kiss me, Will.”

“Well,” he said over the dryness of his throat, “you do make a compelling argument.”

He leaned in, reaching out to twine one hand in her hair. Will saw Tessa smile briefly before their lips met and he closed his eyes.

When they pulled apart, she looked somewhat dazed. “Wow. Who taught you how to do that?”

Behind her, Jem laughed.

Tessa turned to face him, eyebrows raising in interest. “Is that so?”

Jem kissed her in response and she laughed against his lips. His hand slid up her leg again and pleasure raced up Tessa’s spine, settling in the junction between her neck and shoulder, where, she realized, it was Will’s lips that were sending shivers through her body.

Will placed a trail up her neck to her jawbone, and Jem broke away from Tessa to watch as Will introduced his teeth to a spot on her neck.

Tessa gasped, reaching her hand up to rest it in Will’s hair. She looked back at Jem. He was watching the two of them, eyes wide and dark.

She reached out for him and he obliged, leaning forward to kiss her again, this time deeper and more intense. Tessa leaned back into a solidness of Will’s torso behind her.

It was an interesting feeling, being between the two of them. She could feel Will’s tail curved around her on the sand. Jem’s scales were cool against the inside of her knees, although she was careful to avoid kicking the large green fins on either side.

It felt like all of her senses were awake. She was overly aware of every touch, every drag of lips or fingers over her skin that made her tremble. It was different. Different, but good.

Heat pooled in the pit of Tessa’s stomach. Desperate for friction, she grabbed one of Jem’s hands and guided it between her legs.

He pulled back. “Tessa. Are you… is this okay?”

She smiled at him. “Yes. Do you want to?”

“ _Yes_ ,” Jem said vehemently, then flushed. He began to touch her, carefully at first, then more confidently as she made a small sound of pleasure and closed her eyes.

Will said in her ear, “Can you take off your dress?”

“Hm? Oh, yes, sorry.” She tugged the sandy frock over her head, asking, “Why?”

Will laughed and helped pull it off. “I want to try something. No, keep going, Jem, you seem to be doing a good job.”

Jem chuckled, slipping his fingers into Tessa once more. She could feel their eyes on her, making her skin tingle, and the rough pad of Will’s hands on her sides made her jump.

Will’s hands experimented on her torso, finding ways to make her react. He drew his nails lightly up her back, and traced the line of Tessa’s jaw. She captured one of his fingers in her mouth and in retaliation Will dragged his thumb over her nipple. She arched her back, seeking more contact, which Will gave.

Jem found a spot that made her moan and focused his attention there, stroking and circling until her nerves were standing on end andTessa gasped. Between his ministrations and Will's, she felt as if light filled her and flowed through her body until it spilled over and she fell back, panting.

“Was that okay?” Jem asked worriedly.

She smiled at him. “James. That was wonderful.”

“Do you call me James now too?” He seemed pleased.

“If Will doesn’t mind.”

Will shrugged, looking at Tessa in a fond way that made her insides feel fuzzy.  

“Is it mating season for humans?” Jem asked.

She coughed. “Pardon me? Is it what?”

“Well, we can’t mate with you,” Will explained, as though this was a perfectly reasonable conversation to be having. “I don’t imagine that our anatomies would match up.”

“No!” Tessa said. “God, no, I don’t need you to mate with me! Wait, do mermaids have a mating season?”

Jem shrugged. “For procreation, yes. For pleasure, no,  but I don’t think it’s that common. Not as much as it’s said to be with humans. I imagine someone else would be able to tell you more about it than me.”

Tessa looked at Will.

“I’m flattered,” he said to her. “But as it happens, I don’t know any more than Jem. Fighting off demons keeps you busy. However, Tess, there is something I want to try, if you don’t mind.”

“By all means, go ahead.”   

Will kissed her lightly, teasingly, before moving down her body. He paid attention to her breasts and stomach until she squirmed, impatient and eager for whatever else he was planning. His tongue brushed against her where Jem’s fingers had been before, and Tessa let out an impressive string of curse words.

Jem laughed, and Tessa looked up at him, smiling upside down from where she was lying on the sand.

“I spent a month on… _ah,_ Will… on a ship. You pick up some things,” she explained, not without some difficulty. Her mind felt warm and hazy, and it seemed a lot of trouble to string words together when she wanted to focus on the feelings Will was sending through her.

Tessa reached down to pull lightly on Will’s hair, wanting more. In return, he did something with his tongue that made her cry out.

She reached out for Jem, keeping him connected. He took her hand and didn’t complain when her nails dug into it as she came again.

They traded lazy kisses after, lying on the sand, but Tessa was tired and content. Will and Jem were entangled with her -- Will’s head resting on her stomach, Jem wrapped around her side and her hand stroking Jem’s forehead.

Her heart felt so full it might burst out of her chest. Tessa closed her eyes, committing the moment to memory, and eventually fell asleep.  

\--

 

Will took her out into the water on the fourth day, claiming a surprise. They swam far enough from the island that Tessa began to worry, but Will held her tightly to support her.  

“Jem brought his instrument out,” Will said, once they had stopped. Tessa could feel his powerful tail treading water next to her legs. “He wants to play for you. I’ll be holding onto you the entire time, Tess, okay? Just tap me when you need to breathe.”

She nodded and took a large gulp of air as they ducked underneath the surface of the ocean.

The salt water stung Tessa’s eyes when she opened them, but soon her vision cleared enough to see Jem a few feet lower than them, his eyes closed in concentration.

His instrument was shaped like a human violin, but Tessa could tell that it was made from a different material than the typical wood, which she guessed would warp underwater. As Jem started to play, though, all thoughts vanished from Tessa’s mind, cast away by the music.

The sound rippled through the water to reach them, primal and captivating. The water lent an otherworldly timbre to the music, which seemed to echo through Tessa’s bones as Jem played.

After a few minutes, the burning in her lungs reminded Tessa where she was. She tapped Will’s arm rapidly and he brought them back above the water. Tessa took another deep breath before they went down again, where Jem was still playing.  

They repeated this a few more times before Jem finished his song. The last note reverberated through the waves before it died away.

Tessa and Will waited for a moment, still and surrounded by water, until Jem opened his eyes and swam up to them, smiling. He said something to Will in an odd, guttural language, then handed his instrument to Will, who cradled it in one arm and pushed Tessa forward with the other.

For a second, she was drifting unsupported in the sea, but she didn’t feel panicked. In fact, Tessa was filled with an odd sense of peace, even as her body began to sink through the water. She reached up, almost lazily, and Jem caught her and pulled her with him above the surface.

“Sorry about that.” He said as she gulped in air. “My instrument is made to be in the water -- I can’t think of what would happen if I took it out. Will is going to take it back home for me now, but I wanted to play for you. What did you think?”

His arms were strong and steady around her, and Tessa felt the powerful beating of Jem’s tail as he tread water next to her legs. “It was… indescribable.”

“That seems like cheating,” he teased, poking her side.

Tessa laughed. “No, it was beautiful. Truly. I’ve never heard anything so lovely.”

He leaned the side of his head into hers. “Thank you. Do you feel up to swimming for a bit? Tell me when you need me to support you.”

They made their way slowly back to the island and plopped down in the shallows.

Tessa retrieved her dress, which she had taken off before going into the water, and put it back on to protect her skin from the sun. Not that it mattered whether she was sunburn or not, she mused, but she would rather not spend her last days peeling and itchy.

Jem looked over at her and smiled. Filled with sudden affection, Tessa climbed onto his lap -- well, his tail -- and straddled him, carefully avoiding hitting the fins on either side of his tail with her knees.

He laughed, reaching a hand up to cradle her cheek. “What’s this for?”

She shrugged. “I liked your music. And I like that you’re sticking with me, you and Will.”

Jem’s eyes were soft. “Of course, Tessa. You never need to doubt that we’ll be here for you.”

Tessa smiled and kissed him. Already, it was becoming more and more natural -- to be with Jem and Will, to give casual kisses and have them returned, to be allowed to reach out for someone’s hair or hands or face, just because she could.

When the two broke apart after a few minutes, they were laughing. Tessa clambered off of Jem and sat on the mud next to him, her eyes bright.

“The air up here is so… heavy,” Jem said. “Is it always like this?”

Tessa laughed. “No. Where I’m from the air gets shockingly cold. And the higher you go in altitude, the thinner the air becomes. I’ve heard that traveling on mountains can actually make people sick from it.”

“We have mountains. And consolidated sections of heat, or warmer currents in the water.  I think I mean something different than what I’m saying.” He waved his hand through the air. “This air feels like it clings to your skin. But not like the water does, more like… cloth? I’m not making sense.”

“Oh! Are you talking about the humidity? Yes, I think that’s what you mean. I like the way you describe it.”

He smiled at her.

“And no, not all air is like this, just the most unpleasant kind. Sometimes humans use fans to move the air around and cool ourselves off. Here, I’ll see if I can find you a big enough leaf.”

Tessa stood to walk over to the trees, wavered, and fell to her knees.

Jem reached out for her, hoisting himself farther onto the shore. “Tessa? What’s wrong?”

She took a deep breath. “Vertigo. I’m… fine. In a few seconds it’ll pass.”

Jem frowned and wrapped his arms around her. “Has this happened before?”

“Yes. Yesterday, a few times. When the two of you weren’t here. The dizziness, the almost-fainting… it’s from dehydration. Just showing that soon I’ll…”

She didn’t finish her sentence. Jem adjusted them so she rested in his arms, her legs draped over his tail, and hummed an old Mer lullaby. Soon Tessa fell into a restless sleep.

“We can’t leave her alone anymore,” Jem told Will, later. “Any moment now could be her last. She’s scared, we need to be with her.”

Will nodded. “We’ll have to talk to Charlotte.”

 

Charlotte gave them leave to stay with Tessa as long as needed and relocated their patrols to someone else. It was a generous allowance, especially in Charlotte’s new position as Consul, but all parties knew that Tessa would not be needing them, or anything else, very soon.

Will and Jem returned to the island late at night. Tessa was already asleep, curled up underneath a tree. They chose spots in the shallows and settled in.

Will had fallen into an almost-doze, the soothing _shush_ of the waves and the rhythmic rising and falling of Tessa’s side lulling him into a meditative state. When she started to move, however, he was brought back to reality.

Tessa was moving slowly, as if she were in a dream. On her hands and knees, she half-crawled and half-dragged herself towards the water. She only glanced at the Mer watching nervously before continuing her trek.

Jem whispered, “What is she… should we stop her?”

“Maybe she just wants to sleep somewhere else?” Will suggested, but even as he said it he knew it wasn’t true. There was something wrong.

Tessa reached the beach’s edge, panic glinting in her eyes. She looked at the boys, then back down at the sea. Then she scooped up some seawater with her hands and began to drink it.

“Tessa!” They darted forward and she fell back.

Jem crawled onto the shore and dragged Tessa away from the ocean. “William.”

Will understood what Jem needed without him saying anything else. He got in front of Tessa, blocking her view of the water, and took her by the shoulders. “Tess. Tessa, stop.”

“Please,” she begged, panting. “Please, Will. Just let me have a little bit. Jem, I need water.”

“My love, you can’t drink the salt water. It will only make you thirstier,” Will said. “Ouch!” He grabbed her legs so that she couldn’t kick him again.

“Tessa,” Jem said. “Look at me. This is just your dehydration scaring you. Just let the panic ride itself out. But you can’t drink from the ocean.”

She took a deep breath. “Okay. You’re right. You can let me go now.”

Jem looked at Will skeptically, who shrugged. _Only one way to find out._ They sat back.

As soon as Tessa was free, she lunged toward the sea again.

“Son of a bitch,” Jem said, flinging himself after her.

They ended up having to lie on top of her to keep Tessa from the shore. Will and Jem lay there, pinning down her limbs but otherwise helpless while Tessa let out dry sobs of frustration.

Eventually she quieted, staring up at the moon. “I’m sorry.”

Will said, “You don’t need to apologize, Tess.”

Jem added, “We understand.”

They probably did, more so than her. Will and Jem were intimately familiar with death, Tessa remembered. Most of her family members were dead as well, but she had never stopped to wonder how they felt when they were dying, or what came after.

She whispered, “I’m scared.”

The admission brought her both relief and shame.

Jem rolled off her, sensing that she wasn’t going anywhere, and gestured for Will to do the same. Tessa looked over at Jem, who bumped their foreheads together lightly. A reassurance. She tried to smile for him and managed only a pale imitation.

Will took her hand. “It would be unnatural if you weren’t scared. But we’ll be here with you.”

“Promise?”

Jem said, “We promise.”

\--

 

On her fifth day on the island, Tessa woke up to find the energy drained from her bones. She ran her tongue over the cracks in her lips, desperate for any hint of water she could find in the coppery blood.

Will and Jem had spent the night curled up beside her. She extracted herself from them and stood, stumbling to the underbrush where she tried to pee, wondering if she should drink her urine. But the few drops that fell on her hand were spare and dark, and Tessa recognized it as too little, too late.

“Tess?” Will said, lifting his head.

She turned and tried to smile, crawling back to where they lay at the beach’s edge, tails lying in the ocean and torsos resting on the cool sand. The waves that lapped at Tessa’s ankles seemed to be laughing at her.

She whispered, “This is it, Will. I don’t have long.”

He put his arms around her, and she saw tears glistening in his eyes.

Next to them, Jem stirred and woke, asking softly what was happening.

Tessa rolled over and kissed him, then did the same to Will. “I’m so lucky the two of you found me. I wish...”

They embraced her, the coolness of their bodies bringing her a little relief. Will stroked her hair, and behind her Jem kissed her temple and murmured, “We know.”

They lay like that for hours. Will could feel Tessa’s heart beating much too quickly against his chest. He focused on the feeling, dreading when it would stop.

Around midday, when the sun was hottest, something in the ocean caught Jem’s eye. He sat up for a better view and immediately reached out to hit Will’s shoulder.

“A boat.”

Will sat up in an instant. “Where?”

Jem pointed. “Look-- a fishing boat. Not too far from here.”

They glanced down at Tessa, whose eyelids fluttered weakly.  

“We have to bring it closer,” Will said. “We can save her-- James, we have to.”

“I know.” Jem hoisted his tail out of the water with a grunt. “Angle your scales so they catch the light.”

Together they managed to catch the fishermen’s attention, paying no attention to the harsh discomfort of the sun on their tails.

Finally, they heard a shout. The boat drew closer, the figures on it began to point in their direction.

When the boat was close enough for the mermen to read the name emblazoned on the side, the men on board saw Tessa.

“There’s a girl with them!” Someone shouted. “Hurry, get closer!”

“We have to go,” Will said as the boat hastened to the island.

Jem looked over at him. “We can’t just leave her.”

“You know what humans do to Mer. They will kill us. Please, James.” Will begged. “You know I don’t want to leave Tessa either, but I need you to be safe.”

On the boat, one of the humans cried, “She’s not moving! We’re close enough, Tom, I’m getting out!”

Jem nodded.

The pair slid into the water as a human leaped off the fishing boat into the shallows. The man was focused enough on running to the shore that he didn’t notice them brush past him in the water.

Will and Jem resurfaced on the other side of the island, where they hid behind a cluster of rocks and watched.

“Is she dead, Cyril?” One of the fishermen called, dragging their boat onto the sand.

The human who had run forward was kneeling by Tessa. “Almost. Wait! There’s a pulse!”

“Thank God,” the other man murmured. “Here’s a water skin, pour some of that in her mouth.”

The mermen heaved a sigh of relief.

“Poor thing,” said Cyril as he gave Tessa some water. “How’d she end up here, d’ya think?”

“Shipwrecked, probably. Look-- I think she’s waking up.”

“Let’s get her on the boat. Ma will put her up until we find her folks.”

Will watched as the fishermen lifted Tessa into their vessel, talking to her in soothing tones. He turned back to Jem. “She’s safe.”

Jem said, “She’s alive.”

Their words were relieved, but neither of them looked happy.  

\--

 

“You know, I keep thinking about that story,” Jem said a few days later.

Will said, “The one about the mermaid who turns into a human?”

“Yes.”

They looked at each other, then back at the bustling city around them. Mer of every color and kind chased after children, swam tiredly in after patrols, chatted with their friends, or bought goods from one of the rock-carved storefronts. The scene was intimately familiar to both of them, as they had seen it every day for years.

“It’s unlikely that it happened. It’s just a story.” Will didn’t sound convinced.

Jem said, “All the stories are true.”

They looked at each other again.

“Usually,” said Will, “I’m the one with the crazy ideas and you’re the one who has to talk me out of it.”

Jem shrugged. “Okay, then. Talk me out of it.”

“I can’t,” Will admitted. “I can’t stop thinking about her, and I know you can’t either. But we have to. All of our family is here, our whole lives are here. We’ve only known her for five days. We shouldn’t give everything up just for a human girl.”

“It’s not just for a human girl. It’s for Tessa.”

Her name hung in between them, sending warmth to their hearts.

“You see?” Jem said. “Look at the effect she has -- on both of us. You’re my _parabatai_ , Will. I know you feel the same way I do. And she needs us. She has no one on land who cares for her.”

Will sighed. “Charlotte will try to talk us out of it.”  

“So will Cecily. Others as well.”

Will nudged Jem’s tail with his own. “I’ll reach out to Magnus Bane.”

Jem nodded, holding Will’s gaze seriously. They both understood the magnitude of their decision. “We should tell Charlotte. And your family. Say our goodbyes.”

Will said, “This has got to be the maddest idea we’ve ever had.”

 

Magnus Bane’s home was an isolated cave surrounded by tiny bioluminescent creatures. In fact, it was because of these creatures that Magnus had chosen this particular spot for his workshop. He had considered training them to spell out his name, or maybe do a synchronised dance number, but Catarina had convinced him to leave them be. Nonetheless, their light provided his cave with a mystical ambiance.

Warlocks didn’t like to live too close to one another (due to both the high possibility of spells going wrong and the typical overblown rivalries), so wherever one chose to habit had to cause jealousy in their neighbors. Magnus was proud of this choice. Not only was it thrilling to look at, its location was far enough from the mermaid’s city that they didn’t come constantly visiting. Selkies and sirens were always welcome in his home, and Magnus had even gotten the occasional message from a harpy, but mermaids… honestly, they were a little taxing.

Which was why, when Magnus found Will Herondale and his _parabatai_ at the door, he was too surprised to close it in their faces like he should have.

“Hello, Magnus,” Will said, smiling charmingly. “It’s been a while.”

Magnus said, “How do you know where I live?”

He had done some demon-catching favors for Will last year, but they had never met at Magnus’ cave. In fact, Magnus had deliberately ensured that Will never came to his home. Solitude was a priceless thing.

“I followed you back here once after we caught the demon Marbas. I was curious to see if you would notice me, but you never did. By the way, I like the lights. Nice touch.”

“I… thank you.” The two mermen looked at Magnus expectantly. He sighed. “Fine! Come in!”

“Thanks,” Will said, and swam smugly past him. “We’re here to ask for a favor.”

“Of course you are.” Once, Magnus had been charmed by Will’s good looks and wit. Now, he still appreciated Will’s face but the irreverent attitude was starting to wear on him.

“It’s not just a favor,” Will’s _parabatai_ said. “We can pay you.”

“James Carstairs, isn’t it? Will’s told me a lot about you.”

James Carstairs smiled. “Likewise.”

“If you’re going to pay me, then I’m much more willing to hear what you have to say. Will, you should learn some manners from James here.”

Will rolled his eyes, but nodded to Jem that he should continue.

“A human girl was shipwrecked and we saved her. Now she’s safe and back among her people. But Will and I want to be with her again. We wish to become humans.”

Magnus sat straight up. “Humans? Are you insane?” To Will, he said, “How could you drag this poor boy into this mess?”

“Me?” Will asked, affronted. “It was his idea!”

Jem raised his eyebrows.

“Okay, technically we both thought of it, but I didn’t drag him into anything. Tell him, James.”

“Will did not coerce me in any way. I had full knowledge of this plan and I agreed in sound body and mind,” Jem said, as if he had recited this a million times before.

“I won’t do it,” Magnus said. “Absolutely not.”

“Please, Magnus? Haven’t you ever wanted to see what it’s like onland?” Will asked.

The warlock scowled at him. “As a matter of fact, I have been on the land, many times now. Warlocks often go up, because we can change these--” he wiggled his eight tentacles “--to legs very easily. But for you two the change would _not_ be easy. In fact, it would be very painful, and it would have to be permanent.”

“We know,” Jem said. “And we’ve accepted all the risks.”

“All this for a girl? She can’t possibly be that special. And you’ve only known her for what, four days?”

“Five,” Will corrected.

“Five! Oh, good. If it’s been _five_ days then it must be true love!”

Will reached into his bag and pulled out a small sack. He set it on Magnus’ table, and the sack clanked promisingly like gold. “You won’t be able to talk us out of it. Either you change us and get paid or we take our business elsewhere. Maybe to… Barnabas Hale?”

Magnus scowled. “That overgrown eel?”

Will shook the bag of coins enticingly. “Up to you.”  

“Come on,” said Jem, starting to leave. “He won’t help us. I sure hope Barnabas knows his changing spells.”

“Wait!” Magnus called out, already regretting his decision. The two Mer turned back to him, smiling. “Fine, I’ll help you. Come back in a week.”

“A week?” Will started.

“Do you think I can just whip up a complicated potion like this? I _could_ rush it, if you’d like to drown before you reach the surface.”

“A week is fine,” Jem said hurriedly. “Let’s go, Will.”

“Leave the money, and bring more next time. I don’t work for free.”

Will waved an unbothered hand, following Jem out of the cave.

“I hope this girl is worth it!” Magnus said after them.

Jem called back, “She is!”

“What’s her name, at least?” Magnus cried, watching them swim away and feeling helpless.

Will and Jem turned around, and even at a distance Magnus could see both of their faces light up. “Tessa.”

\--

 

“I hate this,” Cecily said miserably as Will got ready to leave. “I hope you know that once you leave, nothing will stop me from seeing Gabriel.”

Will secured the bag of gold to his belt, which felt strangely light without his usual array of weapons. “I assumed that your self-respect would stop you, Cecy. But if you are determined to throw your heart to a Lightwood, I could not have swayed you even if I was still here. Won’t you at least choose Gideon? He’s the smarter one.”

“I will not. Gabriel is smart too, but you’ve invested too much time into your feud to admit it. Besides, Gideon is madly in love with Sophie Collins.” She sighed. “What will I do without you, Will?”

“You can finally claim the title of ‘most good-looking Herondale’ without me there to contest it.”

“Cut it out.” Cecily frowned at him. She was decked out in gear, having just come back from patrol. Over her shirt lay the ruby pendant he had given her that detected demonic presences.

She was fierce in everything, but the sight of her standing there, quiet and worried, made Will realize just how much he would miss his little sister.

“It’s only a year. Then I’ll sneak out on a boat and you can meet me, just like we promised. I’ll bring Tessa. You would like her.”

“Assuming you learn to sail in that time.” She looked down. “Once a year, every year. It’s better than nothing.”

“Of course it is.” Will hugged her. “You know that I’m proud of you, right _cariad_? You’ve turned into an excellent warrior and young woman. Gabriel is very lucky.”

“I love you too, Will.” When Cecily drew back there were tears in her eyes. “Safe journey.”  

 

Will was quiet when he joined Jem on the outskirts of the city. They swam to Magnus’ lair in silence, each wrapped in their own thoughts.

“Do you still want to do this?” Jem asked before they reached the warlock’s cave.

“Yes.” Will said. “Do you?”

“Yes.”

“Okay then.” Will reached out and took Jem’s hand.

 

The change happened as soon as they swallowed the potion. It was agony, they writhed and screamed as their tails split in two and their bones reworked themselves into a new shape.

Magnus forced himself to watch.

With a rush of power he sent them up towards the surface, praying that their human brains could withstand the pressure.

Will and Jem didn’t notice leaving Magnus and shooting upwards to the light. Their minds were focused on the pain of the transformation, and on maintaining their grips on each other’s hand.

When the pain receded enough for Jem to gain consciousness again, they were still underwater. He kicked his legs, moving them as he would his tail.

They were almost there. Will could see the sun shining through the top part of the water. He grabbed Jem’s shoulder, trying to pull them both up to air.

Newly human, they broke through the surface of the water and crumpled onto the sand.

 


	2. The Middle

The fishermen brought Tessa back to their house, which was a small building by the shore. As Thomas lent her his arm and Cyril led them through the docks, other villagers gathered around to stare and gossip.

Their mother, a stout woman called Agatha, welcomed Tessa with stew and a motherly, chastising manner. Tessa rested there for about half a week, and would have stayed longer if she could. Instead, two of Mortmain’s advisors came to take her away, eyeing the humble fishing village around them with disdain. Apparently news had traveled to the castle of Tessa’s arrival, and the king now insisted that Tessa join him in his home.

Mortmain was the perfect well-mannered gentleman, except when he lost his temper at an advisor or servant. Then, his voice would echo throughout the room, and into the hallway the sound of things breaking could be heard.

Mortmain was sickeningly sweet and polite to Tessa. In fact, he seemed _too_ interested in her, and sometimes she caught him staring at her as if expecting something to happen. It unnerved her. So once brought to the castle, Tessa avoided Mortmain as much as she could. This was not hard to do, for the building was large and the king was often busy.

He did insist that she attend the monthly meeting where citizens could petition their king for favors, grants, or money. This took all day, but Tessa enjoyed meeting other people. It provided a break from the monotony of her normal routine.

She disagreed with the king over how to handle one of the petitioners, who was requesting the king’s aid after his village had been damaged by a fire. Mortmain seemed reluctant to lend the man funds, claiming that there had been no report of a fire.

“That’s because we’re on the outskirts of the kingdom. News must not have travelled here yet -- I came as soon as we put it out. Please, my lord.”

Tessa eyed the man over. He was ragged and his clothes were stained dark. He looked as if he had not bathed in days.

She said to Mortmain, “He’s clearly telling the truth. Why won’t you give him what he needs?”

The king raised his eyebrows. “My dear, you can’t believe every tragic story that comes to you on its knees. Do you know how many people I hear who come hoping for a free handout? I can’t drain the treasury for every peasant and layabout.”

“They’re _your_ people,” Tessa said, hardly believing her ears. She heard her voice rising and made no effort to stop it. “For God’s sake, look at the man! He’s been riding for days, his clothing is covered in soot. These people need help, and you would let them suffer for the sake of your treasury?”

The hall went quiet. People who were gathered stopped talking to stare. The stranger studied the floor as if he didn’t dare look up.

Mortmain looked at her steadily. Tessa couldn’t read the expression in his eyes, but she stuck her chin out and held his gaze.

Suddenly the king’s face broke into a wide smile. He laughed, and nervous titters filled the rest of the room.

“Your brother told me that you were spirited, but I didn’t know how much!” To the peasant he said, “You shall get your funds, as our future queen has pleaded your case to me and won me over. No, don’t thank me. Thank her, and pray that next time you come begging you will not deal with me alone.”

The man knelt at Tessa’s feet, murmuring his gratitude before being ushered away. Mortmain was still smiling at her, too wide, too long. She looked away.

 

Two weeks after Tessa had first arrived at the castle, Mortmain called her into the throne room to take measurements for a throne that would be built for her. She sat upon the makeshift throne, exalted and miserable, when a guard burst into the room.

“Your Majesty! Oh, Miss Tessa.” He nodded at her. “Begging your pardon, but there are two men here who want an audience with the king. I told them that petition day had gone by and to wait for next month, but they refused! I think they’re foreigners, my lord. No one seems to know them.”

Mortmain frowned. “Foreigners? I’m not expecting any visitors. Are they noble?”

The guard shrugged helplessly. “Honestly, milord, I couldn’t say. Dressed in the same cloth as me and my kin, but they sound educated.”  

“Hm. Very well then, show them in.”

The door opened, and Will and Jem walked in.

Tessa gasped, her breath twisting painfully in her lungs. _Please don’t let this be a dream._ When she opened her eyes, they were still there, standing on _legs_ and staring up at her.

She stopped thinking and ran to them.

They caught her up in their arms, hugging her tightly. Tessa half-laughed and half-cried into the space between their shoulders.

“How are you _here_?” Tessa asked, pulling back and wiping her eyes. “I thought--”

“I know,” Will said loudly. “You thought we died in the shipwreck. We thought that you were dead, too. Imagine our joy when we heard that you had been taken safely to the palace.”

She laughed. “What?”

“That’s right,” Jem said. “It is us, your loyal bodyguards. All the way from America.”

Tessa noticed that the boys were looking past her, back at Mortmain. The king was still seated on his throne and was regarding them curiously.

She extracted herself from Will and Jem and turned. “My lord, may I introduce Will Herondale and James Carstairs. My… bodyguards.”  

He looked at them for a second longer, then clapped his hands jovially. “Then they are welcome!”

Will reached one finger out and poked the back of Tessa’s arm. She smiled.

 

Tessa was antsy all through dinner. Will and Jem had been invited as well, which made the dry conversation with the king and his advisors much more bearable. They sat on either side of her, and she could feel their energy in the jiggling of Will’s leg and the way Jem tapped his finger on the tablecloth.

She brushed their hands against each other, under the table, and felt them respond. Tessa hid her smile. It felt right to be with them again, although she couldn’t imagine what they had given up.

After dinner she bid the king goodnight and left, energy thrumming beneath her skin. Will and Jem followed behind her as she led the way to her chambers, and she could feel their nerves and excitement spiraling through the air.

The door had barely closed before the three of them were in each other’s arms. They held each other tightly, and Tessa finally allowed herself to exhale.

“By the Angel,” said Will. “Tessa. It’s so good to see you again.”

She smiled. Jem didn’t say anything, but buried his face deeper into her neck.

The scene didn’t feel real, and at the same time it felt too real. She wound her fingers through their hair, one hand on the nape of Will’s neck and one hand resting on the side of Jem’s head, in an effort to ground herself.

“Are you sure you’re not a dream?” She heard herself say.

“Not a dream,” Jem said. His lips brushed her skin. “We promise.”

“If it was a dream it was a harsh one for us,” Will quipped, but his voice was somber. “I’ll tell you why Mer don’t turn human more often, it hurts like hell. We nearly didn’t make it.”

Tessa drew away. “Yes, what happened? That sort of change should have been impossible. I thought it was just a fairy tale, or a children’s story.”

Will and Jem chorused together, “All the stories are true.”

She laughed and made her way over to a couch, gesturing for them to sit. “You don’t have to be cryptic, we have time. Tell me everything, please.”

And so they did. They told her about going to Magnus, about the agony of the change, about waking up disoriented and aching on land. Will and Jem took turns describing their journey -- how they stole clothes from a laundry line until they looked respectable, how they hitched a ride on a farmer’s hay cart, how they learned about human customs and sayings.

Tessa sat and occasionally chimed in with a question here and there. Mostly, however, she just listened, and watched them, and wondered at their presence.

The night sped on and eventually the three ended up asleep on the couch, curled up together and holding each other as if they would never let go.    

\--

 

Tessa drew up the hood of her cloak before entering the shop. A bell hanging over the door tinkled merrily as she opened the door and stepped in.

It was a small place, located a few streets off of the main marketplace. Tessa looked around and saw a variety of herbs, books, and other interesting things. There was only one other woman browsing the shelves and she quickly turned away before Tessa could catch her eye.

Tessa drew her hood farther over her eyes, hoping that it would be enough to disguise her. She was banking on the fact that most of Mortmain’s citizens didn’t know who she was, and that women often going into these types of stores often hid their faces to preserve anonymity.

“Hello, sister!” Someone called.

Tessa jumped and turned to find the shopkeep waving at her cheerily.

“Can I help you find anything?”  

“Um, yes, actually.” She blushed and lowered her voice to a whisper. “I’m looking for a, uh… family planning device?”

“Oh, I see,” the matron smiled knowingly at her. “Well, in the back I have amulets to block conception, and then other ones to increase fertility when you’re ready.”

“No offense, Mistress, but I would rather use something more tangible than an amulet.” Tessa smiled to lessen the disdain of her words. “I’ve heard, perhaps, of an herb that women can use? Do you sell anything like that here?”

“No offense taken. I do stock the herb you’re looking for, let me find it for you.”

Tessa thanked her and began to peruse the other items on display. She opened a book, glanced at a page, and immediately slammed it shut, face burning.

A book full of drawings like _that_ where anyone could see it! But then again, that was one of the main reasons why shops like these were popular, Tessa reasoned.

Shame filled her. On the island, she had thought that she would die. Anyone in her position would have acted similarly, especially when opportunity presented itself in the form of two very good-looking mermaids.

 _But you had only known Will and Jem for a few days_ , a voice whispered inside her mind. It sounded suspiciously like her Aunt Harriet. _What they must have thought of you. And now that they are here, you should be waiting until… well, I suppose you can’t ever marry them. Goodness, your values certainly have changed._

The shopkeep came back over to her, holding a small bundle. “Here you are, dear.”

“Thank you.” Tessa took the package and stood there, hesitating.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes, of course. My apologies. I was just thinking.”

The other woman raised her eyebrows.

“Well, my aunt always taught me that women who go into these stores are immoral. But now I am here, so I suppose I have become a loose woman!” Tessa laughed, a little hysterically.

The shopkeep smiled kindly at her. “My daughter, desire is natural. The only reason that we think otherwise is because it has been drilled into our heads to be ashamed of your feelings. No other creature denies themself their lust the way humans do. Haven’t you ever heard the birds in spring?”

Tessa thought. “I suppose you’re right.”

“Of course I am. But it takes more than a few words to undo a lifetime of learning that sex is something not to be spoken or thought about. I’ll give you a tip, my girl, everyone thinks about it. Especially women, so I suppose we are all just as immoral as the next person.” The shopkeep winked at her.

Tessa laughed and paid her, feeling better. As she was preparing to leave, though, the woman said, “Now wait, I think I know you!”

Tessa froze. Forcing her face into a casual position she said, “Oh?”

“Yes! Aren’t you the huntsman’s girl? Adele, isn’t it? I guess Johnny the baker finally made a move, did he?”

“Ah, yes,” Tessa said, sending a silent apology to the real Adele. “He did.”

The woman smiled at her. “I’m glad to hear it! The two of you have been dancing around each other for so long, I thought he’d never get his nerve up. But don’t fret, my dear. I won’t tell anyone you were in here.”

“Thank you, Mistress, I appreciate it.” Before she could change her mind, Tessa picked up the book of drawings and added it to her purchase.

 

While Tessa slipped away, Will and Jem browsed the main part of the market. They found a weapons shop and spent some time there, debating the merits of various daggers. Will was showing knife tricks to a group of astonished children, so Jem went over to another shopper who had been making conversation with them earlier.

“Excuse me. Could I ask you a question?” Jem asked.

“Suppose so.”

“My friend and I are newcomers to this kingdom, and we don’t know much about it. May I ask, what do you think of the king?”

The man’s face suddenly became guarded. He eyed Jem suspiciously. “You one of those spies that turns people in? I won’t be arrested for treason, now. I’m not saying anything.”

“Thank you,” Jem said sadly. “That tells me all that I need to know.”

They met back up with Tessa, who smiled secretly at them.

“Did you get it?” Will asked in her ear.

She nodded. “What did you two do?”

“Charmed the populace, shopped for weapons. Our usual _modus operandi._ Wait until you see my new dagger.”

Tessa said with a smirk, “Later, darling,” surprising a loud laugh out of Will.

They turned back to look at Jem, who was trailing behind.

“Is everything alright?” Will asked. “Have you finally realized that my jokes are much funnier than Tessa’s?”

She scoffed. “That is a barefaced lie and you know it.”

“I was just wondering,” Jem said before they could veer off on a tangent, “if Mortmain is kind to you.”

They had reached the carriage, whose driver tipped his hat at them. Tessa didn’t say anything as they climbed inside, her face oddly shuttered. She looked out the window at the village around them as the carriage began to move, and the boys waited for her response. Eventually she spoke.

“He is kind to me.” Tessa said. “He has introduced me to his subjects, he has respected my wish for a long engagement, he has given me my own chambers and maid.”

“But?” Will asked.

“But he is… _too_ kind.” Tessa shook her head. “I can’t explain it. Sometimes when he looks at me I get cold, and I don’t know why. He has given me everything I asked for, and shown much more patience than a reasonable man would in this situation -- why? Why does he put up with all of this? What is he waiting for?”

She sighed. “Why do you ask, Jem?”

“Only curiosity.” Jem leaned against her shoulder. “If you feel that you’re in danger, call for us and we will be there in an instant.”  

“Of course,” Will added. “One portly king against two former Mer? You don’t need to fear. We are your bodyguards, after all.”      

Tessa smiled. “I have meetings with him all afternoon, but they are more tedious than dangerous. But I will get through by thinking of the two of you, and of tonight.”

They smiled at each other.

 

“What are you doing in there?” Will called.

He and Jem were lounging on the bed, massaging sore muscles after a sparring session that afternoon. Moonlight flickered in through the curtains, illuminating Jem’s face ethereally as he bent over a particularly tough knot in his foot.

Will looked away, back at the closed bathroom door. “Tess?”

“Coming!” Her voice sounded frustrated. “I’m almost ready, I just have to put this stupid leaf… ha!”

The bathroom door opened, and she stood there triumphant. “Got it.”

Her hair was frazzled, and she was still in her evening dress, having been wrestling for a long time with the placement of the contraceptive herb inside her.

The boys sat up eagerly, and Tessa grinned. “Why are the both of you still dressed?”

“We aren’t the only ones,” Jem said, looking pointedly at Tessa’s gown.

She said slyly, “I thought perhaps you wanted to undress me.”  

The look on their faces told her they did want that very much. She laughed and held out her hands in invitation.

Will stood and took Tessa’s hand, pulling her close so their bodies were pressed against each other. With his other hand, he traced a lock of her hair behind her ear and felt her shiver.

“We missed you very much, Tess,” he said lowly.

His new human legs made them almost the same height, and neither one had to move very much in order for Tessa to lean in and press her lips lightly against his.

He smiled. Their lips were just barely touching, and Will moved his head, just slightly, to drag his lower lip a few inches along hers. Tessa nuzzled him back.

The kiss deepened gradually, and Tessa felt a candle reignite inside her where it had been snuffed out. Will kissed as intensely as he did anything else, pouring all of his heart and concentration into his lips and tongue. Their chests were pressed together, and she wondered if he could feel the pulsing of her heart, beating so hard against the walls of her chest that it was almost painful.

Their hands were still twined together when they pulled away from one another. Will’s pupils were wide, but his eyes were tender. He gazed at Tessa as though committing her to memory, then looked over at Jem, who had come up beside them.

Tessa turned to Jem. Hints of a nervous smile pulled at the edges of his lips. She moved forward and kissed his neck, just under his jaw, and felt his pulse jump. Tessa smiled and kissed his temple, the sides of their faces pressed together.

She felt Will wrap his arms tightly around her waist and press his head into her shoulder. Tessa paused, then tilted her head again to finally, _finally,_ kiss Jem fully.       

It was as nice as she had remembered. Jem tasted faintly of chocolate as Tessa gently slipped her tongue into his mouth. He responded, one hand tangling in her hair and the other running down her side to rest on her waist.

As she was kissing Jem, Tessa was vaguely aware that Will had begun to unhook the buttons of her dress. Jem noticed as well, and drew back from Tessa to help draw her arms out of the bodice.

Obligingly, she stepped out of the garment and tossed it aside. She liked the way they were looking at her, as if she was something precious and divine.

Will paused in his undressing of her, and she realized that he was staring at her corset in bafflement.

“What is it?”

He said, “How does it come off?”

Tessa burst out laughing. “It hooks in the back.”

“Forget it. Here,” Jem said. In one swift move he reached around Tessa and tore the corset off.

She gasped. “Jem!”

Jem looked at her and smiled steadily. The mixture of mischief and self-assurance in his eyes sent a thrill of desire through Tessa.

She reached out and tugged at his tunic. Jem looked over her shoulder and smiled at Will before stripping himself of his shirt.

Clothing was discarded and left on the floor until the three ended up on the bed, sitting in front of one another bare.

The air was tense.

“Are you nervous?” Jem asked softly.

“Yes,” Tessa said honestly.

“Oh, good.” Jem sighed in relief. “I am too.”

Will said, “So am I.”

They looked at each other and laughed.

Tessa was filled again with a sense of warmth, and this time a nostalgic desire, for she had forgotten how beautiful they were. Not handsome, not attractive -- though those words were true, it wasn’t enough to describe Will and Jem.

She studied their new legs. The jut of muscle, the arches of their feet, the sparse hairs over the circle of a knee. Her gaze drew upward, to the softer shadows of the thighs, then to the curls of pubic hair around their cocks.

“Alright?” Will said softly.

She smiled. “Just admiring the view.”

Jem laughed and leaned forward to kiss her again. She reached out for him, and at the same time reached for Will, who moved forward to join the mix as well.

Feeling raced over Tessa’s body. Their hands, their lips, traveling everywhere and igniting heat in the pit of her stomach until she lost count of who was where and whose hands were whose.

She reached down and took hold of Jem, who groaned. Will laughed into her ear, the whisper of his breath sending shivers down her spine.  

Eventually Tessa ended up straddling Will’s lap, his erection poking into her. His eyes were dark, pupils blown out, and he was staring at her as if she were everything that mattered.

All of a sudden Tessa was nervous. She said, “Jem?” and in an instant he was there, moving away from Will to place a soothing hand on her back.

“Let me help,” Jem said. He kissed Tessa’s neck tenderly before wrapping his arms around her sides. His clever fingers found her clit, and she relaxed into him with a moan.

Jem said, “Go ahead, William.”

Tessa gasped, overwhelmed with feeling as Will entered her.

She wanted to be even closer to them, to be one. No, she was already with them, it was impossible to physically be nearer.

She felt the boundaries of the room blurring. The only thing that mattered -- the only thing that existed was TessaWillJem, and they rocked together like a ship on the ocean.

—  

 

Tessa would spend part of her days trapped in meetings with Mortmain’s advisors, where the men waffled for hours about the history of the kingdoms and her duties as upcoming queen. Tessa generally spent this time coming up with ideas on how to get out of marrying Mortmain. Once the meeting was over, she would practically run out of the room, either to find the boys or, if they were busy, to read or wander the castle on her own.

Will and Jem were also finding ways to occupy their time and, more specifically, to adjust to a human body. Will discovered the castle’s library and would read for hours, drinking in as many books as he could.

Human books, he soon found, were much more fragile than Mer books, being made of flimsy paper and ink instead of being carved into finely hammered stone. To his dismay, he ripped part of a page once, but quickly placed the paper back in the book and hid it deep in the stacks.

Jem managed to get hold of a human violin and began to learn it, telling Tessa and Will delightedly of all the similarities and differences. The other two adored listening to him play, and although he insisted that it didn’t sound as good as he had under the water, they didn’t seem to mind. Many evenings were spent in raptured silence while Jem performed for them, or in quiet conversation as he practiced scales or composed in the other room.

Missing deep sea patrols, the boys also began to train with Mortmain’s soldiers and spar in the courtyard. It took some time to get used to the new style of fighting -- their leg muscles were weaker than those of the other men and became sore more easily. Will and Jem were used to fighting with daggers and spears, but in the water they had the added advantage of their powerful tails to stun or hinder an enemy.

The other soldiers weren’t sure what to make of these strangers, who spoke like them but were unfamiliar with some of their customs or habits. The new queen’s bodyguards were good at fighting, but sometimes they stumbled in ways that would have been trained out of warriors such as themselves long ago. They were odd, those two, a little aloof but not unfriendly.   

The other servants didn’t interact much with the newcomers, except to set two extra places at the dinner table. Of course, gossip abounded about how the future queen slept with two men in her bedchambers, but the king had a bodyguard in his suite, too. A noble quirk, the servants decided -- for Mortmain had ensured that Tessa was to be treated like a noble and hadn't shared her common upbringing with his staff. isolating her from potential allies.

Although they spent nights together, Will and Jem were careful to climb out of Tessa’s bed before sunrise and go back to their cots on the other side of the room. They managed this for about two weeks, but it is human nature to make mistakes and the boys were human now, after all.

 

It was Tessa’s maid who discovered them. The three had been careless and fallen asleep in Tessa’s bed without separating in the middle of the night as they usually did.

Tessa woke as the door began to open, and in a panic shoved the boys off of the side of the bed. They jerked awake, groaning and complaining, but fell silent as Bridget came in and they realized what had happened.

Bridget helped Tessa dress as usual, and broke her usual silence with the comment, “You know, my mam was an Amazon.”

Tessa blinked. “She-- what?”

“My mam, my mother. Her family was from… oh, far away, and she was brought up in the Amazon tradition. They’re warriors, you know. All the women fight and it’s expected that men take care of the children while Mommy’s at war.”

“Oh, that’s… interesting. May I ask why--”

“They’re also,” Bridget interrupted, “very free with their love, the Amazons. So I won’t tell anyone about the three of you.”

The laces of Tessa’s dress jerked out of the maid’s hands and onto the floor as Tessa turned to face her. “You know?”

Bridget nodded. “Had my guesses for a while, but I saw the three of you this morning. You don’t need to worry about me, miss. Your secret is safe with me.”

“I… thank you,” Tessa said. “Truly. Do you- is there anything I can do for you in return?”

Bridget looked away. “Well, we’re supposed to be silent when we’re around the nobles, but I do like to sing. It’d be nice if I could sing while I was cleaning, if you don’t mind.”

Tessa had been expecting Bridget to ask for money. Singing was a small favor to ask in return for a secret of such magnitude. “Of course. Please, sing whenever you wish to.”

 

“Why is she doing that?” Jem whispered to Tessa.

She whispered back, “Hush, she wants to sing.”

In the other room, Bridget’s voice warbled a song about sweet William dead in his grave.

Jem grimaced. “Does she have to use Will’s name in all of them? And why are they all so morbid?”

Bridget finished her song and began a new verse about a bride who drowned on her wedding night.   

“I think I’ll go practice,” Jem said.

“I’ll come with you,” Tessa agreed hurriedly. They headed out the door, leaving Bridget and her sad songs behind.

\--

 

It was raining one day when Tessa was in the library. The soothing patter on the windows was lulling her into an almost-trace when Will suddenly put his book down and stood. He was frowning, clearly thinking of something to say.

Her attention was caught. She asked, “What is it?”

Will took a deep breath, and said, “I fear you do not love me. I mean, I know that Jem comes first in your heart, but I was hoping that you could grow… fond of me. Grow to love me in a lesser way, perhaps.”

“Will,” said Tessa, “What on earth are you talking about?”

He blinked at her, startled.

“Love you in a lesser way? What utter nonsense?” She demanded, too exasperated to finish the question. “There are no firsts or seconds in my heart, William Herondale. I love you _just as much_ as I love Jem. My heart is split evenly between the two of you.”

“Tess—” began Will.

“Of course you are different people, so I love you both in different ways, for different things. But to love you less than I love Jem? It is unthinkable.” She placed her hands on his arms. “You each hold half of my heart. Without you — without _both_ of you — I could never be whole again.”

“Tessa.” Will said, and kissed her.

When they finally pulled away from each other, his eyes were over-bright.

Tessa said gently, “Will, I know that you would do anything for me or Jem. Why don’t you believe that we would do the same for you?”

Will sighed and sat down. “I think I should tell you about the time I thought I was cursed.”

Tessa took his hand. “Okay.”

 

And so the days passed, and the three fell deeply and steadily in love. There had been physical intimacy at the very beginning of their story, and then an emotional attachment that developed from Tessa’s near-death that made her world onland duller without them. Will and Jem, for their part, had felt hope, the feeling of ‘this could be something,’ if only they had time.

Now, they were together again and had the time, and love developed between the three of them. They learned how each person liked to be kissed and where, and that Will mumbled in his sleep and Tessa hogged the covers.

They found that Jem was partial to the taste of chocolate, and so the other two tried to find it for him when they could. Will read _A Tale of Two Cities_ and didn’t like it, but then had a lengthy discussion about it with Tessa and found upon re-reading that the book wasn’t so bad after all. Tessa discovered that it was possible to be annoyed with someone and still care for them more than anything else in the whole world.

She also realized that loving two people at the same time did not rend her heart as she had feared. Instead of tearing her in half, loving both Will and Jem made her heart feel stronger and fuller, and made her days brighter than they had been for a long time.   

 

About three weeks after they had joined her on land, Will and Jem suddenly fell ill. As evening approached, they were forced to lie down, claiming that their legs were wobbling too much to stand.

“It feels similar to when we first changed,” Will panted, his face pale with sweat. “Remember, James?”

“As if I could forget. There’s the same pain when we try to walk, too.”

“But what is it?” Tessa fretted. “You’re not turning back, are you?”

Jem shook his head. “No, I think -- Tessa, could you pull back the curtains?”

She did, revealing the night sky, and the boys sighed in understanding.

“It’s the full moon,” said Will. “She’s calling us home.”

“The moon controls the tides, and so all sea creatures have a strong connection with her,” Jem explained. He reached over to take hold of Will’s arm. “Which means that this sickness should only last when there’s a full moon in the sky, probably. And then we’ll be fine.”

“So your bodies want to return back to the water?” Tessa asked.

Will nodded. “That’s what it seems like, essentially.”

Tessa rang for Bridget and spoke with her softly at the door. A few minutes later the servant entered again, carrying buckets. The boys watched curiously as she and Tessa disappeared into an adjoining room.

When they came back, without the buckets, Tessa dismissed the servant and smiled at Will and Jem. “I had an idea… it seems like it might help but I’m not sure. Can’t hurt to try though, right?”

She helped up Will from the bed and led him to the bathroom. He walked as best he could but Tessa ended up half-carrying him.

Will eyed the tub warily. “What is this, Tess?”

“It’s water. You can get your clothes off yourself, I hope?”

He nodded and she went back into the other room for Jem.

“It’s only built for one person, you’ll have to squeeze in,” Tessa continued as she helped Jem into the bathtub. “I know it’s not the same as the ocean, but I figured it was better than nothing.”

She knew she had made the right decision when both of them sighed with relief as the cold water surrounded them.  

“You’re brilliant, Tessa.” Will leaned back, lines of tension vanishing from his face. “Truly, a genius.”

She drew up a stool and sat by them. “So, a monthly ailment! You’ll get a glimpse of what we women go through, then.”

Will and Jem looked up at her blankly.

“You know, because women… you know about our monthly bleeding, don’t you?” Surely they would have noticed when their female friends started wearing sanitary cloths. Tessa couldn’t imagine that mermaids would simply let their blood float through the water when they started their cycle. _If_ they ever did. Come to think of it, she wasn’t quite sure how fish anatomy worked in that sense.

“Monthly bleeding?” Jem looked horrified, confirming Tessa’s suspicion. “Do humans bleed every month?”

“Is it a ceremonial thing?” Will also looked disgusted. “By the Angel, Tess, are you bleeding all the time? Right now?”

She laughed. “No, not right now. I will be in… less than a week, I think. Human women bleed every month once they reach a certain age, unless they’re with child. It’s an involuntary process, believe me.”

“That sounds awful,” Jem said, with feeling. “Mer don’t have that.”

Eyes wide, Will asked, “Where do you bleed _from_?”

Tessa grinned wickedly.

 

Two days later, Will and Jem were feeling better as the full moon waned, although Tessa feared she that may have scarred them for life with her lesson on feminine biology.

Jem seemed to recover faster than Will, who stayed in bed a few more days to get his legs back to full strength, although he soon grew bored. Jem brought the violin from the music room to their chambers to practice and provide some entertainment for Will.

Tessa came back late one night to find them curled up together like cats on the bed, Jem’s violin in its case on a nearby chair. There was a book open on Will’s lap, which he must have been reading from before Jem fell asleep on his chest.

She smiled and climbed in next to them, shoving at Jem to let her under the covers. He shifted slightly, allowing her space, and she was enveloped by the sense of warmth and familiarity.

Outside, a night owl hooted gently. Tessa closed her eyes.

\--

 

“Can I ask you a question?” Tessa said one afternoon.

Jem looked up at her from where he had been restringing his violin. “What is it?”

She hesitated, not sure how to phrase what she wanted to ask. “Are you and Will still _parabatai_? I’ve seen that your runes have faded.”

Will sat up but held his tongue, watching.

“I’m not sure,” Jem said, looking uncomfortable. “Why do you ask?”

Tessa bit her lip. “I don’t want you to feel… I just wanted to clarify that you and Will can…”

“That we can what?”

She hesitated, then blurted her words out in a rush. “That you can be together as the two of you are with me, now that you are on land. If… if you wish to.”

Jem looked taken aback. “I don’t--”

Will stood. “Leave it, Tessa.”

She faced him stubbornly. “I won’t. I think we should at least discuss it.”

“You don’t have a _parabatai_ , you don’t understand.”

“Of course not, but from what you have told me of the _parabatai_ bond, yours seems to run deeper than most. And the two of you are not Mer anymore--”

“We will always be Mer!” Will’s voice echoed in the small room.

Tessa faltered but kept going. “Of course you are, I misspoke. But if there are feelings--”

“There are no feelings. We shouldn’t speak about this.”

“Oh, you are impossible!” Tessa cried. “Will, where is the harm in acknowledging that you love Jem?”

“You don’t understand!”

“I understand plenty! I understand that you would rather yell at me than talk to Jem about it!”

“Enough,” Jem said. His voice cut through the din of shouting, and they went quiet. “Let’s not fight, not about this. Will, go take a walk. Tessa, you too. In the opposite direction.”

“Really?” Tessa said, sounding hurt. “You’re siding with him? Am I supposed to let you suffer in silence forever?”

“Who’s suffering--” Will began, but Jem stood and cut him off.

“I’m not taking sides. Walk. Go calm down.”

Will and Tessa stormed out the door, glared at each other, and then set off in separate directions down the hallway. Jem watched them go.   

 

Will found an alcove sequestered between a glowering portrait of some ancient king and a rusty suit of armor where he could stew. Tessa didn’t know what she was talking about. He and Jem were _parabatai_ , that was all. Of course he loved Jem, of course Jem loved him. It was natural, there was nothing they were hiding from themselves about their relationship.

And even with this new addition of Tessa, and sex, it was still fine. It was normal. If sometimes Will kissed Jem’s shoulders or thighs or stomach, it was fine because Tessa was there too. If Jem made Will moan or arch his back until he couldn’t remember his own name, it was excusable because Tessa was there. She was sometimes with them, sometimes only watching, but her presence made it safe.

After about fifteen minutes, he heard footsteps approaching and poked his head out.

“I thought you would be with Tessa.”

Jem sat down next to him. “Tessa will calm down on her own. I wanted to check on you. Still upset?”

Will shrugged and moved over on the bench to give Jem more room. Jem looked around mildly.

“That’s an interesting painting. Really makes me feel welcome.”

Will smiled despite himself. “Doesn’t it? Even his nostril hairs seem to be frowning at us.”

Jem laughed, and they passed a few minutes in comfortable silence.

“I shouldn’t have been cross with Tessa,” Will said eventually. “I’ll go apologize to her.”

Jem hummed. “In a minute. I want to ask you something.”

Will motioned for him to go on.

“Why did you get so angry? Is the idea of me so awful to you?”

“What? James, of course not. It’s just… we’re _parabatai._ We can’t.”

Jem looked at him.

“Right,” Will realized with a start. “We’re not _parabatai_ anymore -- but still…”

“Still what? I understand if the problem is me, but please, just tell me. I would be hurt worse by… by getting my hopes up.”

“By getting your hopes up?” Will grabbed Jem’s face. “James, you must know. You are _everything_ to me. You are my stars, my moon, anything in the sky that sends light through the waves and makes night near the surface so much more bearable. For many years you, James Carstairs, were my whole world. Without you I would shatter into pieces.”

When Will stopped talking, Jem had an odd look on his face. His ears were red, and he let a kind of half-laugh.

“You and your silver tongue, Will. I think… I think that I have loved you for ages, and not known it. But I know it now. We will always be _parabatai,_ but now we can be something more.”

Will shook his head, dropping his hands and turning away. “I would lose you. You are far too important for me to lose, whether we are _parabatai_ or not.”

“Look at me. William, look at me.”

He did, reluctantly.

Jem said, “You will not lose me. You will never lose me, I promise you.”

There was a pause while they just looked at each other.  

When Will smiled, it was as blindingly brilliant as the Angel’s own being. “Then I think we should go find Tessa.”

 

Tessa was in the library. She had a book open and was staring fixedly at a single page, although Will got the impression that she had been reading that page for many minutes now.

“I owe you an apology,” Will said.

She startled and turned around. “As do I.”

Will shrugged and wrapped his arms around her from behind. She wiggled in the chair, trying to reach up to embrace him as well.

“As it turns out,” Will said. “You may have been right in some ways.”

“Oh?”

“Jem and I… what we have is special. Different than most humans, but different from other _parabatai_ as well.” Will pulled out two chairs and the boys sat down across from her. “It seems that we may have had some unrealized potential between us all these years. But you must understand, it’s forbidden for _parabatai_ to fall in love. The penalty…”

Jem shook his head. “But the Clave can’t reach us here. And falling in love with you, Tessa, felt so familiar, at least to me. Because I had fallen in love with Will many years before, although I had mistaken it as the love one _parabatai_ feels for another. But it is much deeper than that.”

The boys looked at each other.

Will said softly, “I suppose this would be the part where you kiss me now.”

Jem’s gaze flickered down to Will’s mouth, then back up to his piercing eyes. “I suppose it would.”

“Do you want me to leave?” Tessa asked quietly.

“No,” Will and Jem said unanimously. There was a hint of fear in their voices.

They still didn’t look away from one another.

Tessa held her breath, not wanting the smallest sound to interrupt their moment. She felt as if this was incredibly private, but because they had asked her not to, she didn’t avert her gaze.

Jem and Will moved toward each other ever so slowly, inch by inch, like continents joining together. When they finally reached each other it was a relief from the intensity of the suspense, from the earth-shattering intimacy of blue eyes locked into brown ones. The kiss was sweet and so slow, as if anything more urgent would break them apart.

Will reached out his hand and felt Tessa take hold of it. With his other hand he cradled Jem’s face.

He had kissed Jem before, many years ago when they were both young. He had dreamt of kissing Jem many times since. Now here, in a human library, on human legs, holding hands with Tessa and keeping her connected, Will finally kissed Jem again.

The scene wasn’t how he had ever imagined it. But it was so much better.

\--

 

Tessa dreamt that she was back in her mother’s womb, idly moving her arms and filled with peace.

No, she wasn’t in a womb, she was in water. She was underwater, but looking back at herself. Dream-Tessa had her eyes open, and was gazing happily at the clear expanse around her. A school of silver fish swam by, darting through Dream-Tessa’s hair.

Tessa waved at herself. Dream-Tessa waved back, and then looked up as a shadow fell over them.

Tessa was shot through with a sense of foreboding. There was something above the water, and it waiting for them.

A giant hand plunged through the tranquility of the dream. It tried to grab Dream-Tessa, and Tessa tried to shout to herself, tried to warn her.

Dream-Tessa looked up in alarm, but wriggled her fins and slipped away. Deprived of its prey, the hand turned toward the remaining Tessa and reached for her.

She woke slowly, the sense of dread from the dream filtering into her senses as her eyes opened. It didn’t feel like a nightmare, where she usually woke with her heart racing and a scream in her mouth. This was quieter. This numbed her chest and made her senses sluggish until the feeling of slow apprehension threatened to overwhelm her. This was far more frightening.

Tessa focused on the light of the moon on her face and on the heavy breathing of Will and Jem next to her, trying to push the fear away.

When morning came, she wouldn’t remember the dream. Tessa would remember waking up in the middle of the night and she would remember the chilling fear that overtook her when she woke, although she wouldn’t be able to think of why.

\--

 

The second time Will and Jem felt the aftereffects of their change from Mer to human, they were prepared and the night began much more smoothly than the first time. Tessa had Bridget draw a bath in advance so that the boys could spend more time in the water easing their burning legs.

Will remarked, “I heard a rumor that Mortmain is building a huge bath adjacent to his chambers.”

Tessa made a face. “Why?”

Will shrugged.

She looked horrified. “What if he tries to drown me? Like Bluebeard and his wives.”

“Don’t be--”

“Dramatic? That’s rich coming from you, Will.”

He frowned at her. “I’m only saying, you shouldn’t worry about it. Maybe the man just likes to soak. The rumor’s probably not even true, anyway.”  

Tessa hummed noncommittally.

They soon forgot about Mortmain’s bathing preferences, too focused on getting through the night. Tessa watched Will carefully, remembering that he had taken longer to recover last time. Her mind was eased, though, when he didn’t seem to be affected by the symptoms as much as he was last time.

They were both out of bed quickly and walking around as normal. For a second, Tessa allowed herself to hope that their illness would fade as they spent more months onland and their bodies became more used to human form.  

However, she soon noticed that Jem was having a harder time this month than he had the previous time. When pressed, Jem admitted to Will and Tessa that his legs were bothering him as they had when he had first changed, but that they shouldn’t worry, as it would most likely get better soon.

Days passed, and Jem was still sick.

After one week, Will went into town and bought a cane with a sword inside. The cane was supposed to be temporary, for Jem to use until his strength came back, but soon he needed it more often than not. It became a new version of normal to see him leaning on the cane as he walked and training with the sword.

As the weeks went by, Jem started to get thinner. He began eating less, and although Tessa and Will pressed food on him he had no appetite. Desperate, Tessa asked the cook for a raw fish, the kind the boys might have caught and eaten when they were mermaids. Jem ate it, but his body rejected the food and he spent the next hour vomiting.

Will and Tessa worried. They brought the castle doctor in to look at Jem, who sat patiently through the examination but left undiagnosed and uncured.

Since the doctor had failed, Will and Tessa took it upon themselves to research Jem’s illness and spent hours in the library poring over books, none of which proved helpful.

After a while, Jem sat them down and asked them strongly not to waste their time when they all knew that they wouldn’t find anything.

“As far as we know,” Jem said. “Will and I are the only Mer to have become human ever since that old story. It is useless to read through human books when they have nothing on the subject.”

“I could try to get in contact with my sister,” Will offered. “Maybe Cecily could look in the Mer books.”

But Jem shook his head. “The Clave hate humans. They would never acknowledge that there was a way for Mer to change into one. If there are books on the subject, they would be destroyed or locked away where even Cecily couldn’t find them.”

“So what do you want us to do?” Tessa asked.

Jem leaned his shoulder against hers. “Stop chasing shadows. Spend time as you would usually. I ask you to look at me and see _me_ , not with this mystery sickness. I am still here.”

“Of course you are,” Will said. “If that is truly what you wish, we will stop looking. Right, Tess?”

She didn’t say anything, looking mullish.

Jem said. “Tessa?”  

She caught his eyes, and the fight went out of her. “Yes, very well. But I would like to say that I very much disapprove of this idea and I am only agreeing because you asked it, Jem.”

He smiled. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

\--

 

They found a hill away from the castle and escaped into the sunshine for an afternoon. By the time they reached the top of the hill, Tessa and Will could tell that Jem’s legs were bothering him. Although he didn’t say anything, he was leaning heavily on his cane as they sat down upon a blanket Tessa had brought.

From their spot they overlooked the town, and further than that shone the glistening of the sea. A breeze carried to them the faint scent of the ocean, and the grass tickled Tessa’s feet as she kicked off her shoes.

There was idle chatter as they dug into the picnic basket, sharing a small meal of meat pies, cheese and fruit.

Everything tasted better in the bright sun. When they were finished they leaned back and watched the light blue sky, lighter than Will’s eyes.

Jem reached over and laid his palm against Will’s face, rubbing idle circles on the other boy’s temple. Will turned his head to plant a lazy kiss on the inside of Jem’s wrist.

Tessa watched them, smiling.

“The Angel has blessed me that I am here today,” Jem said. “To be here with you, Tessa and Will, and to love you and know I am loved in return… it is the greatest gift I can think of.”

“And you claim you’re not good with words,” Will said. “We love you too, James.”

“I heard you gave Jem a dramatic speech when you confessed to him, Will,” Tessa teased. “Do you have a speech for me?”

Will propped himself up and smiled at her. “I have millions of speeches for you. I write a new one every day, praising your wit or your eyes or your breasts.”

She snorted.

“I never claimed that I wasn’t shallow. But I will claim this. I spent so much time in my youth pushing people away that I never opened myself up to be loved. After the curse, I considered myself lucky to have my family back and to have Jem at my side. I never dreamed that I needed more than that.

“But you, Tessa, you set me ablaze. Because of you I was able to dream that I could love a woman romantically, and because of you I am able to love Jem as my soul always wished to. You are the first dream of my heart, Tessa Gray, and it doesn’t matter if we are Mer or human or flying whales. I will always be dreaming of you.”

He settled back. “How was that?”

She took a shaky breath. “Wonderful.”

He grinned, pleased. “And do you have one for me?”

Tessa looked at him for a second, a soft smile on her face. She said simply, “I love you, Will Herondale. And you, Jem Carstairs. I love you, I love you, I love you.”

 

Jem discovered that he was getting worse. It wasn’t a sudden realization, but a gradual feeling that standing up each morning was a struggle, and that even with his cane, walking felt like there was glass in the soles of his feet.

He began to practice violin sitting on a chair instead of standing as he normally did. He tried to keep training with Will, although he was moving slower than he ever had before and often had to sit some exercises out.

Jem thought of Henry, the husband of his almost-mother, almost-big sister Charlotte. Henry’s fins had been badly torn in a tough battle, and he lost much of the feeling in his tail. However, ever the optimist, Henry had begun to devote more time to his inventions instead of fighting -- inventions which helped him swim almost as well as he had before and inventions that provided help to many other Mer, warriors or not.

Henry hadn’t let his disability get in his way. He never complained about the unfairness of it or the change of his role in society, although it was true that Henry had never been the most enthusiastic fighter.

What use would Jem be if he couldn’t walk? Would he be a crippled musician? Yes, Jem loved music, but he had been raised to fight, and he was good at it. If Will had no one by his side, he would rush in to even more dangerous situations and get hurt worse than he would if Jem was with him. If Tessa was in danger, would Jem still be able to protect her? Or would he be useless?

He didn’t want to see the pity in Will and Tessa’s eyes when he told them how much he was hurting. No matter how well-intentioned they might be, he couldn’t bear to have them fuss over him as if he were an infant.

No, it was better not to tell them. They thought of him as always steady and kind. Learning that he wasn’t -- that he longed to complain of his aches, that he felt _weak_ and not good enough -- it would only complicate things.

\--

 

“Do Mer have weddings?” Tessa asked one night.

She had pulled on a light dressing gown, the gauzy fabric of which fluttered as she moved to stand by the window. She imagined that it was Mortmain in the bed behind her, waiting for her on their wedding night, and shuddered. It was a relief to turn and see her boys lying there, half asleep and holding each other.

Jem propped himself up on one elbow and yawned. “Our people love very fiercely. We have ceremonies of undying loyalty, I suppose you could call it a wedding. ‘Set me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon thine arm…’ how does it go, Will?”

Will quoted, “‘Set me as a seal upon thy heart, a seal upon thine arm, for love is strong as death.’”

“That’s beautiful,” Tessa said.

Will made a face. “It’s better in Mer. Some of it gets lost in translation, I think.”

“It’s still beautiful.” She sat down on the bed facing them. “What else happens at the ceremonies?”

“The women are adorned with gold — usually taken from shipwrecks and melted down.” Will reached out to play with Tessa’s hair.

“Do you have forges under the sea?”

Jem smiled. “Yes. Deep, deep on the ocean floor there are volcanos. Some of our kind have built smithies around them.”

“Not many of us go there, though,” Will put in. “Creepy lot, those smiths.”

“But they make beautiful things,” Jem admonished gently, as he always did. “If you were getting married, Tessa, you would be draped in a golden mantle and precious jewels.”

“If I were getting married? If I were a mermaid, you mean.” Tessa smiled, her previous worrying forgotten. “Very well then, who would I be marrying?”

The boys grinned at each other easily.

Will suggested, “One of the Lightworms.”

And then, over Tessa and Jem’s protests, he cried, “It could happen! You never know James, she could get bored of us.”  

“I would not!” Tessa promised. “Never, never.”

 

Will’s sleep was interrupted by a cold breeze, coming in from the open window and chilling his skin.

His first thought was that Tessa had stolen the covers again. His second was that there was a shadow next to the window where a shadow should not be.

Will looked to his side, and saw a man looming over the bed. The moonlight glinted off of the steel of a knife.

Will yelled, launching himself up. His attacker stumbled back, surprised, and Jem and Tessa jolted awake.

Jem grabbed his cane, sliding the sword out. The second assassin stepped away from the window, grinned, and grabbed the sabre strapped to his back. Jem leapt forward to engage him.

The first attacker was missing an eye, but he was muscled and well-equipped. Will realized that these men were professionals, and probably very good at their jobs.

He called, “Jem, dagger!”

Jem switched the sword to his left hand. He fell back, still parrying with his mercenary, and grabbed the knife that he kept in the nightstand drawer before throwing it to Will.

Will ducked the stab that his attacker had thrown at him and caught Jem’s knife. He smiled. _Still got it._

Tessa stood with her back to the wall, unsure of what to do or how to help. She grabbed the fireplace poker and held it out in front of her, waiting and watching.

Jem’s assassin lunged forward, stabbing with his blade and reaching out with the other hand. He tried to grab Jem, who fell back. Jem stumbled and dropped to the ground, bringing his sword up just in time to stop the sabre from slicing his head in two.

The blades locked together, the mercenary baring down with all his strength and Jem’s teeth grinding together with the effort to keep the swords up.

Jem’s arms started to shake. In one swift movement, he dropped his arms and slid forward through the other man’s legs, feeling the sword swing past his head.

He stood and stabbed as the assassin turned to face him and managed to gash the hitman’s arm. The other man growled but faltered only slightly. They began to parry again.

The second mercenary threw his knife at Will, who dodged. Will threw a punch at the man, which landed and caused a spurt of blood to rush from his nose. Angered, he grabbed Will by the throat and lifted him off the ground.

Will dropped his dagger and scrabbled uselessly at the assassin’s hands, who only squeezed tighter. Will kneed him in the stomach, but still the other man didn’t let go.

Will’s vision was starting to go fuzzy when there was a loud _thunk_ and the assassin staggered back. Behind him stood Tessa, holding her fire poker.

The man dropped Will to the ground and turned. Will took the opportunity to grab the dagger he had dropped and plunge it into the assassin’s neck.

He moved to Tessa and took her arms, checking her over. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Are you?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

They turned to look at the other side of the room, where Jem was locked in a struggle on the floor. He was pushing a dagger into the assassin’s chest, although the other man was still struggling beneath him.

Eventually the scrambling stopped. Jem untangled himself from the dead man and stood with some difficulty. He stuck his sword into the floor and leaned on it heavily as he faced Tessa and Will. “Everyone alright?”

They were staring at him. Tessa’s eyes were wide and she had a hand clapped over her mouth.

Jem turned to Will. “What’s the matter?”

“James, you’re hurt,” Will said, his face pale. He reached for his stele to draw a healing rune, then remembered that he couldn’t. Instead, he stretched his hands out to Jem.

Jem looked down and realized that there was a knife sticking out of his side. His hand pressed the wound, and it came away sticky with blood.

“Oh.” Jem said. “It’s nothing.”

He looked up at Will and Tessa and smiled. Then he collapsed.

 


	3. The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The relationship between these three is so beautiful and moving. I don't think I captured it that well but it was fun to try.  
> I really enjoyed writing this fic and I hope you liked it. Thanks for reading!

Will was pacing. Tessa watched him anxiously as he strode up and down past the door to their chambers.

The doctor’s assistant had pushed them out of the room as the doctor himself bent over Jem. They had been waiting ever since. It felt like days, although for all Tessa knew it could have only been a few hours. The only sounds were Will’s footsteps and the occasional _click_ of Tessa biting on a fingernail too hard.

The door opened, and the two snapped alert as the doctor came out.

“What’s going on?” Will demanded, stepping close to the man’s face. “Is he okay?”

“Master Jem is resting. He is stable, for now.”

Tessa breathed a sigh of relief and stepped forward to take Will’s hand. He was shaking.

“Your friend was incredibly lucky,” the physician continued. “From what I can tell, the knife missed any vital parts of the body, which makes recovery a possibility. However, there is an added complication.”

Tessa gripped Will’s hand, hard. Her voice sounded faint as she prompted, “Yes?”

“There seems to be… has Master Jem been ill recently?”

Will looked at Tessa. “In a way. We don’t know what it is, it doesn’t fit the symptoms of any traditional sickness. But he has been getting weaker. It’s been harder for him to walk, he has less energy… will this affect his recovery?”

The doctor looked grave. “I’m afraid so. It may make recovery take much longer, but the two of you need to prepare yourselves for the fact that Jem may not get better at all.

Will’s hand, holding Tessa’s, suddenly went slack. She glanced up at him, and his face was white and stunned.

“I’m sorry,” Tessa said. “But that is unacceptable. If money is the problem, we can figure out a way to pay you whatever you desire, whatever will help him.”

“I have done all I can, Miss Gray. Believe me, I am not one to withhold treatment from a patient, especially not one as ill as Master Jem.”    

There was a pause.

Tessa asked, “Can we see him?”

“Not just yet. He is sleeping, and I don’t want him to be woken.”

“We won’t wake him,” she protested, but the doctor shook his head.

Will said fiercely, “When he wakes up, wouldn’t it be better for him to be surrounded by people he knows and trusts?”

“I won’t have you causing him distress. He needs a calm, sterile environment.”

Will growled and took a step forward. The doctor shrunk away from him.

“You must let us see him,” Will said. His voice was loud and angry.  

The doctor shook his head. “I will not.”

They stared at each other for a moment, Will’s hands clenched into fists. Tessa watched with bated breath.

Will turned away in a sudden, sharp movement. Tessa reached out to him but he was already storming off down the hall.

The doctor gave her an apologetic look and went back inside to care for Jem. Tessa stood there for a moment, feeling like she couldn’t breathe, then walked away with her own anger bubbling up inside her.

Tessa slammed open the doors to Mortmain’s study, rage blinding her to anyone else in the room. She stopped in front of the king. “Was it you who sent those assassins?”

He looked up at her calmly, smugly. She hated him. “I beg your pardon, Miss Gray?”

“ _Was it you_ who sent those assassins?” Tessa slammed her hands on the desk. “Don’t make me ask you again!”

“I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Mortmain said. “But if you are quite done with your little tantrum, we can sit down like adults and you can fill me in.”

“I don’t have time for your games,” Tessa said. She realized his advisors were staring at her and made an effort to lower her voice. “Last night two men broke into my chambers and tried to murder me. One of my men was severely hurt and I—”

“What?” A man said from behind her. “Tessie, did you just say someone tried to murder you?”

Tessa spun and stared. “ _Nate?_ ”

\--

 

Will knelt by the bed, wondering if he ought to pray to some higher deity. He had never been the praying type, although Jem was. Will remembered Jem telling him about the great dragons that ruled over the waters where his mother’s family lived.

“If you’ve never seen one how are you so sure they exist?” Will had prodded.

Jem had simply smiled. “I don’t need to see to believe. I have faith. You should try it sometime.”

If there was ever a time to try faith, Will thought, this was it.

“Raziel, agent of heaven,” he said, and then couldn’t think of anything else. Would Raziel still recognize him, out of the water and in a human body? Would Raziel refuse to take Jem’s soul if Jem died? No, Jem wouldn’t die. _Please don’t let Jem die._

He stayed like that for a while, hands clasped together and trying not to think. Eventually, a series of soft noises indicated that Jem was waking.

Will was at his side in an instant and was greeted with a hazy smile. Jem moved his legs a few inches over on the bed for Will to sit, which he did.

“James, it is… so good to see you awake.”  

Jem’s gaze focused on Will. He frowned. “Is that a black eye?”

“Ah, don’t worry about that. How are you feeling?”

“William.”

Will sighed, knowing that Jem wouldn’t let him evade the question. “The doctor wouldn’t let me come in the room.”

The corner of Jem’s mouth quirked. “So you got in a fight with him?”

“Don’t be ridiculous, James. Me, getting in a fight with a doctor? I went down to the tavern and got in a fight with a drunkard instead.”

A breath escaped from Jem that might have been a laugh. “I suppose we all have our ways of dealing with crisis.”

“If you’re well enough to make jokes you must be healing.”

“Hm. Will you help me sit up?”

Will did so. Jem settled into the pillows and sighed, his skin pale and clammy to the touch.

“Will, I’m going to say something and you won’t like it.”

“Alright,” Will said warily, but gestured for Jem to continue.

Jem stared down at the bedsheets and said, “You’re going to have to look after Tessa once I’m gone. Promise me you will.”

“Jem, don’t talk like that. You’re going to get better.”

“I don’t think I am.” He sighed and took Will’s hand. “If I’m honest, I started wondering if something like this would happen back when my legs started troubling me. Magnus said that perhaps the change wouldn’t take, and we knew that it was dangerous. My suspicion is whatever is causing the pain in my legs will also prevent my wound from fully healing. I don’t have much time left.”

Will’s eyes burned with tears. “Don’t say that.”

“Will, I am dying--”

“You swore an oath.” Will said. The words cracked in his throat. “You _swore_ to me. ‘Entreat me not to leave thee, or return from following after thee. For whither thou goest, I will go, and where thou lodgest, I will lodge.’”

Jem’s eyes were sad. “‘Thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God. Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried. The Angel do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee and me.’ The _parabatai_ oath accepts death as a reality, Will. You cannot follow me there.”

Will looked away, tears now falling freely from his eyes. “What would you have me do, then?”

“Stay with Tessa. Get her away from Mortmain. Marry her, if you wish-- I give you my blessing. Most importantly, I want the two of you to be happy.”

“You’re a damn fool,” Will said softly, “if you think we could ever be truly happy without you.”  

Jem reached out, wiping away a tear from Will’s cheek with his thumb. His hand cradled Will’s face, and Will leaned into the touch.

There were tears on Jem’s face as well. “My Will.”

They stayed like that for a long time.

 

Back in the library, Tessa stared in disbelief at her brother. He looked the same as he always had, but his blond hair was combed back and his clothes were made with richer fabric than they had ever seen as children. Clearly life heading a trading company was suiting him.

“I’m sorry,” Tessa’s brother said. “I was using the latrines— what’s going on?”

“Nate,” Tessa said. “What are you doing here? I thought you were in America.”

He grinned at her. “I was! But I had to come see my little sister’s wedding. What kind of brother would I be if I missed it?”

 _What kind of brother indeed._ Tessa smiled politely. “Well I would hate to waste your trip, but we haven’t set a date yet. And you know these things take a long time to plan. Could be weeks… or months, even.”

“While I would usually indulge my bride in any way possible,” Mortmain cut in, “the attempt on her life worries me.”

Tessa shot him a dirty look. The king ignored her and directed his words towards Nate.

“It may be that those assassins were sent by someone who takes issue to our marriage. If that is the case, we must send the message that this union will not be swayed and wed as soon as possible.”

“If they really wanted to kill me, they won’t hold off simply because I’m now married! On the contrary, they would have even greater motivation.”

One of Mortmain’s advisors nodded in agreement and whispered something to his neighbor. Tessa felt a surge of hope, tampered by the disapproving glares of a few others.

She continued, “A wedding would also be an easy place for the killers to strike. Really, the best thing to do is probably for me to just leave. ”

“Please, Tessie, don’t be ridiculous.” Nate sat down next to Mortmain. “I like your plan, my friend. Since I’ve travelled so far, do you think it would be possible to have the wedding soon?”

Mortmain clapped his hands. “Absolutely! And to address your concerns, Miss Gray, we could hold a private ceremony. No assassins could get in -- attendance would be limited to a priest, dear family such as your brother, and of course the two of us. We can throw a celebration for the public at a later time.”

“Mr. Mortmain, that sounds perfect.” Nate beamed. “I must thank you for everything you’ve done for my family. Would holding the ceremony tomorrow be too hasty?”

“Tomorrow?” Tessa exclaimed. “I rather think--”

“Oh, not at all,” Mortmain said, pointedly speaking over Tessa’s protests. “How splendid. Tomorrow it is!”

“Wonderful!” Said Nate. “Isn’t that wonderful, Tessa?”

They turned to face her -- Mortmain looking as self-satisfied as a cat in cream, Nate smiling broadly -- and Tessa was struck with the knowledge that her brother did not care about her at all.

She forced her cheeks into a thin smile. “Yes. Wonderful. Please excuse me.”

Free from the room, Tessa walked evenly down a few corridors until she found an empty closet filled with linens. She carefully closed the door, sunk down the wall to clutch her knees, and finally allowed herself to cry.

She cried for Nate, who she had adored blindly as a girl and then grew up to love and care for. Aunt Harriet had warned Tessa to keep him out of trouble and they had both tried their best. Nate was reckless, so they steered him away from the trading empire that Tessa’s late parents had built.

Once Aunt Harriet died, though, Father’s trading partners approached Nate and offered him an opportunity to be as reckless as he wanted. Heading the company was just a high-stakes game of chance -- those had always been Nate’s favorites at the gambling table.

In the fabric room, Tessa sobbed for Nate, because she hadn’t been able to save him from rising higher and higher in the company. Tessa remembered Aunt Harriet sewing late into the night, trying to make up the money that Nate had spent. She and Aunt Harriet had always looked out for Nate, but he had never done the same for them. Tessa cried not only for her brother, but for her own self, because she shouldn’t have had to save Nate from himself.

Tessa slammed her fists against the floor, reveling in the pain that shot through her. Nate had never faced the responsibility of his actions. Now he was marrying her off to Mortmain simply to cement his trade routes and _it wasn’t fair!_

Her thoughts turned to Jem, struck with life’s unfairness with a dagger in his side.

You mustn’t cry like this in front of him, Tessa told herself. He _will_ get better.

She stayed in that closet for a little while longer to exhaust herself of tears, then stood and collected herself. It didn’t matter what the doctor had said. She was going to see if Jem was awake.

 

She found Will coming out of their room, looking miserable.

“Jem’s awake,” he said.

“By the Angel,” Tessa exclaimed, “what happened to your eye?”

He smiled at her phrasing, then took a closer look at her. “It doesn’t matter. Have you been crying?”

She looked down. “Will, I have horrible news. But I don’t want to worry Jem about it, he needs to recover.”

“Well, you can tell me. What is it?”

Tessa looked at him. Will’s face was drawn, his eyes red from lack of sleep and tears. Tessa thought he was just as beautiful as when she first saw him. Perhaps even more, now that she knew his soul.

She didn’t want to tell him because she knew how worried he was over Jem. But, Tessa reasoned, he would find out eventually, and it would be best to hear it from her.

Will reached out for her. “Tess? What’s wrong?”

“My brother’s here. I’m being married tomorrow.”

He stared at her silently for a minute, then let out a sigh. “God.”

“I know.”

“Raziel’s balls. What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know.”

Will embraced her. “We’ll figure it out, Tess. Don’t worry.”

She was silent, breathing in his smell of fresh air, committing him to memory.

“I think that you should tell Jem, though.”

Tessa drew back. “He’s sick! I can’t worry him with this.”

“He would want to be worried with this. He loves you, Tessa. Besides, if Jem found out that we were keeping this from him there would be hell to pay.”

She sighed. “Yes, you’re right. Of course you are. Is he feeling up to visitors?”

“He wants to talk to you,” Will said. “Personally, I think he should sleep, but he refuses to.”  

“Turns out all three of us are stubborn as mules.” Tessa smiled at him. “I’ll go in now. Thank you, Will.”

_For everything._

He kissed her forehead. Tessa steeled herself and walked into the sickroom.

 

Jem looked up as she entered, smiling when he saw her. His chest was bare but for the alarming amount of bandages wrapped around his side.

 _When did he get so thin?_ Tessa wondered.

Jem said, “Tessa,” and patted the bed.

She climbed up next to him. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m feeling… not so good. The doctor gave me something for the pain, but I can still feel them.”

“Them?”

“My legs,” Jem explained. “And the dagger wound, but my legs hurt more. It feels like there are pins holding them together all the way up to my hips.”

“What? God, Jem, how long has it been like this?”

He rested the side of his head against hers. “Awhile. I’m afraid that I haven’t been completely honest with the two of you about how much the illness affecting me. It’s been getting worse, Tessa.”

“Oh, James. I could tell that much, at least a bit. But I didn’t know it was so bad.” She took his hand. “Why didn’t you tell us?”  

He shrugged. “I suppose I didn’t want to be seen as a burden.”

“Jem,” Tessa said, but he cut her off.

“I know, I know, it was stupid of me. But now… Tessa, do you remember when you were on the island?”

“How could I forget,” she said softly. “Why?”

“You knew that you were going to die. You had accepted it, and asked us to respect that.”

Tessa was silent for a long time. Jem watched her frown to herself as she thought.

Over many years it had become a fact of Jem’s life that people generally paid more attention to Will. Jem didn’t mind that, because it made sense. Will was charismatic (when he wanted to be) and more handsome than Jem.

But Tessa. Tessa was different. Tessa had _seen_ Jem, and that was what mattered. She had seen Will too, but when she looked at Jem nothing in her gaze dimmed from when she looked at Will. Tessa told Jem he was beautiful -- even with a tail, even with human legs, even as he grew ill and ashamed of how scrawny his chest had become.  

She still wasn’t saying anything.

Jem prompted, “Are you angry?”

“I’m not angry.” Tessa shook her head. “No, I am angry, a little. Not at you. Well, not _completely_ at you.”

He smiled.

“I just… I don’t know what to say. I don’t know how I should feel. You may have accepted your death, Jem, but Will and I will not let you go without a fight. Be that as it may… I didn’t want to tell you this, but Will said I should. The wedding is tomorrow.”

He blanched. “Tomorrow? But… why?”

“My brother is here, and he is requesting it. But I will not marry Mortmain, and you will not die. This is a call to action, _not_ a tragic ending. Understood?”

Jem knew that she would get out of the marriage one way or another, and with Will to help it was even more possible. But he would only slow them down, and he wouldn’t live long after the escape anyway.       

Nonetheless, Tessa’s gray eyes were fierce, and there was no dissuading her when she set her mind on something. If Jem was still alive by morning, he knew that his lovers wouldn’t leave without him as surely as he knew his own name.

He said, “Understood.”

“Let me find Will. He’s probably waiting outside, but once he’s here we can start to think of a plan.”

Jem agreed, but stopped Tessa as she made to get up. “Just… wait a second. Please.”

“What is it?”

“I’ll fall asleep soon. Will you stay?”

She softened, and laid back down beside him. “Of course.”  

Jem relaxed back into the pillows. Tessa rested her head against his shoulder and they passed a few minutes in comfortable silence. 

Tessa reached into her shirt and pulled out the jade pendant. "Do you remember when you gave this to me?"

She felt him nod. 

"It was after we had quarreled about some little thing, I don't remember what. For the life of me I couldn't fathom why you would give me a gift right after we had just fought. You said that it was a token of your history, your family, and now of your love for me." 

"You haven't taken it off since." Jem was smiling. His breathing began to deepen.

"That's true. Because it's a promise." 

“Tessa, no matter what happens... You know that I love you,” Jem said, his voice heavy with sleep.

Tessa felt her mouth quiver. “I know. And I love you.”

He didn’t say anything, but his hand tightened over hers. Glancing up, she saw that his eyes were closed.

She waited until Jem had truly fallen asleep, then stole over to his nightstand. In the usual drawer she found his dagger, which Will must have cleaned of blood.

Tessa glanced over to make sure Jem was still sleeping. Then she quietly took the knife and slipped it into her bag.

Just in case.

\--

 

Tessa stared at herself in the mirror, decked in white and looking somber. Mortmain had picked the dress, and it was much frillier than she would have preferred. The dress’ high collar was tight around her throat, and Tessa fancied that she looked more like a ghost than a bride.

“I hate seeing you in that.”

Will had come up behind her. Tessa caught his eyes in the mirror and asked, “Why, because I’m marrying someone else?”

Will shook his head. “For Mer, white is the color of funerals.”

There was a silence as Tessa imagined the dread he must be feeling. She turned away from her reflection to lay her palm against Will’s cheek.

“Do you have it?” she asked quietly.

He nodded miserably and handed her a small vial. It was roughly the size of her thumb, containing a sludgy liquid the color of mud. Tessa tucked it into her bodice.

“I don’t like this, Tess.”

“Will, this was _your_ plan,” she reminded him gently.

“Well I’ve changed my mind. What if something goes wrong? What if it doesn’t work like it’s supposed to?”

“Hypotheticals will just cause more nerves. This is our only chance.”

“I know.” He dropped his head into her hand. “I just wish we could be there with you.”

Tessa didn’t tell him that she wished the same thing. “You have to take care of Jem.”

“I will. We’ll meet you at the cliff. Be brave, Tess.”

“Like Boadicea. I know.” She kissed him softly.

There was a knock on the door, and Bridget stuck her head into the room. “Miss? It’s time.”

“I love you,” said Tessa.

“I love you too,” Will whispered, and watched as she followed the servant out of the room.

 

Bridget helped Tessa carry her ridiculous train as they walked silently through the halls. They were mercifully empty, the servants no doubt warned away for the bridal procession.

The pair stopped outside the door to the main throne room, and Bridget arranged the train of the dress artfully on the floor. Tessa put a hand to her bodice, checking that the vial was still there.

Bridget stood and regarded her. “God bless you, Miss Tessa.”

Tessa smiled weakly at her. Bridget pushed open the doors to the throne room where Mortmain and Nate stood waiting.

The two men, smiling, watched Tessa as she entered the room. The dress would only allow her to move slowly, and she felt the eyes of Mortmain’s advisors following her as she made her way to the dias.

The priest clapped his hands together. “Well! This is certainly exciting. I’ve never done a royal wedding before. A few noble weddings, yes, but never a royal one. I wonder if anything will hold up to this, or if it’ll all be downhill from here.”

“If we might begin?” Mortmain said testily, but even he wouldn’t be outwardly rude to a man of the cloth.

“Of course.” The priest looked at Tessa. His eyes were curiously light for someone of his coloring: his skin tone slightly darker than Jem’s-- but Tessa stopped, not wanting to think of Jem right now. She stared back into the man’s curious eyes. They were oddly shaped as well, reminding her of a cat.

He winked at her. “Do you, Theresa Gray, take this man to be your husband?”

Tessa swallowed. “I do not.”

Mortmain began, “Wha--?” as the priest smiled. A blast of blue light erupted from his hands, and Tessa shielded her eyes.

When she looked up again, the room was frozen. Mortmain’s mouth was opened in anger, but he was as unmoving as a statue.

The warlock smiled at her, throwing off his priestly robes. “I can only hold them like this for a few minutes, Miss Gray. My powers are weaker here on land.”

Tessa nodded, reaching for the vial that Will had given her and downing it in one gulp. She tugged Jem’s knife out from where it had been strapped to her leg underneath the dress and hesitated.

“Thank you, truly, for all of your help.”

“It was my pleasure.” Magnus Bane wiggled his fingers and blue sparks danced around them. “I suspect I’ll be seeing you again soon, Tessa Gray. But right now, time is of the essence.”

Tessa cut a long slit into the side of her dress, dragging Jem’s weapon through stubborn knots of fabric. Finally, the dress fell away and she was left in only a shift. She hurriedly slid the knife back into its sheath at her thigh.

“They will wake up soon.” Magnus said. “Go!”

The warlock disappeared behind the throne, where Tessa knew a hidden passage led out of the castle. She turned and ran.

 

There were a few servants in the halls as Tessa escaped. She didn’t spare them a second glance, dodging hastily as they called after her.

The door was in sight, and Tessa caught a glimpse of bright green grass beyond it. She gasped, reaching out towards freedom -- when someone grasped her arm and pulled her off course.

She shrieked and felt her capturer drag her backwards into a nearby room. His grip tightened when she struggled, his fingers digging into her arm.

The man pushed her roughly against a wall, and Tessa gasped as he turned her to face him. “Nate?”

“Tessa, what are you doing?” Her brother demanded.

“What am I doing? What are _you_ doing?”

“I’m saving you from ruining our family! Tessie, you have to marry Mortmain! This is just wedding-day jitters.”

“Dear God, Nate!” Tessa cried. “Are you really this selfish or are you just stupid? Let me go! Mortmain can find another bride!”

“But he wants _you_. Tessa, please, this is a good match. What would you do without me? Live in sin in a dirty shack with your two ganymedes?”

Tessa’s blood went cold.

“Oh, yes,” Nate continued. “Don’t think I don’t know about them. Honestly, Tessa, I’m ashamed. I had to learn through a letter from my trading partner that you were delaying your wedding to him in order to share your bed with two strange men. Lucky that Mortmain convinced me to take care of it, although how your escorts managed to fight off those mercenaries, I’m not sure.”

“You sent those assassins?” Tessa whispered. She felt as if all breath had left her body.

“I had to, Tessie. Don’t you see?”

Painful revulsion for the man in front of her rose up in Tessa. “All I see is a coward who cares more for his company than he does for his sister.”

Nate’s grip on her arms tightened painfully. His face twisted into a mask of rage. “You’re no sister of mine.”

“What do you mean?” There were tears in Tessa’s eyes threatening to spill over. “Of course I am. You’re my big brother.”

“I’ve never been your brother. Our parents lied to us. Your father, Tessa, was a monster who could change his shape. He tricked our mother into lying with him before he slithered back into the sea.”

“It’s not true,” Tessa gasped out. “It can’t be. Nate, please.”

“She should have killed you right away, but Father was sentimental.” The sudden hate was gone from Nate’s face, and he released her, pleading. “Just do your part for the family that raised you, Tessie. Marry Mortmain. He’s the one who told me the truth about our family. And he’s willing to marry you, despite knowing how unnatural you are.”  

She stared at him, horror and grief warring in her soul.

“I loved you, Nate. I still do, despite everything you’ve done. But I won’t enslave myself for you. I won’t marry him.” Tessa grabbed the knife strapped to her leg and drove it into her brother’s shoulder.

Nate cried out in pain and fell back. Tessa raced out of the room. She didn’t dare think about what he had said to her, focusing solely on reaching the doors.

She finally burst through the servant’s entrance, but didn’t slow to admire her freedom. Tessa’s lungs were enjoying huge gulps of fresh air and she tried not to think about how these could be her last breaths ever. She kept running for the cliff.

 

“What’s taking her so long?” Will demanded. “Do you think something went wrong?”

Jem shook his head, not wanting to consider that possibility. He was leaning heavily against Will, unsure whether he could stand on his own. “She’ll be fine.”

Jem coughed violently, and Will looked at him with concern. The thought of Jem dying, when they were so close… No, Jem would survive. They would all survive.

“Will! Jem!”

They turned to see Tessa running towards them. The wind moulded her thin shift to her body as she ran and made her long hair dance in the air behind her.  

The boys had both drank their potions while waiting for Tessa to arrive. Now, they dropped the small vials on the grass near the precipice where they stood.

“What took so long? Is everything okay?” Will asked. Despite his tone, Will was grinning with relief as Tessa reached them, panting for breath.  

“I got held up. But don’t worry about it, I’m here now. Jem, are you alright? James?”

Jem nodded, reaching out to Tessa. She took his hand, replacing where Will had been steadying him earlier.

“He’s so pale,” she murmured to Will.

“I’m fine,” Jem managed. “Are we ready?”  

Tessa clasped hands with Will on her other side. She held tightly to both of their hands.

Together, they stared down at the writhing ocean below. Waves crashed against the cliff, so far down.

“On three,” Will said. “One--”

Behind them, the castle doors burst open and guards swarmed out.

“We have to go,” Tessa said nervously.

“Two--”

Mortmain yelled, “Get them!”

“Three!”

Will, Tessa, and Jem each took a deep breath. Then, still holding hands, they ran forward and leaped off the cliff.

 

The fall seemed to take much longer than Will had expected. Over the sound of his own screams, he could hear Tessa screaming and an alarming silence from Jem.

 _By the Angel, what if there are rocks in the water?_ He fretted. _What if the potion doesn’t work?_   _What if we didn’t take enough?_

Will tried to imagine drowning. In all his years as Mer, he had never thought of the water as a dangerous element. Had he and Jem come all this way just to die?

But as he worried, Will felt himself start to change.

Magnus’ spell knitted his legs together, just as painfully as the first time. Will felt his knees vanish and his bones elongate into a tail. Scales burst out of his skin. The gills on his sides opened again, rapidly struggling to breathe and Will was suddenly caught between two sets of lungs.

 _Thank God,_ he thought just as he hit the water.

 

As Jem changed, he felt a rush of strength return to him through the agony of his body turning back into that of a sea creature. Suddenly, he could breathe again without that sharp pain in his chest.

He plunged into the cold water, giving a rush to his senses, and discovered that he was grinning widely. Jem felt _good._

Jem looked down, and found his tail waving beneath him. He glanced over at Will and Tessa. They looked confused, still adjusting to the change, but still alive.

On a hunch, he checked his shoulder for the _parabatai_ rune, unsure whether he wanted it to be there or not. But it looked just like it had in land, faded and barely there. He didn’t feel the _parabatai_ connection magically restore itself, and he sent thanks to Raziel.

 

When Tessa opened her eyes and regained control of her thoughts, she was deep in the ocean, surrounded by water as far as she could see.

Panicked, her human lungs tried to gasp in air but ended up taking in water instead.

 _You’re drowning! You’re drowning!_ Her brain shouted at her, and Tessa thought, _I’m going to die right here._

She felt strong hands take hold of her arms, and Jem’s face came into view.

“Tessa. Stop, it’s okay. You’re okay,” Jem said soothingly. “Just freeze.”

She did, seawater still trapped in her mouth and throat.

“That’s it,” Jem encouraged her. “You’re alright. You’re not drowning, Tess. You’re safe.”

Tessa felt Will wrap his arms around her to support her from behind.

“Now, don’t think about it. Just let yourself relax.”

She did, focusing on Jem’s words, and felt the gills on her sides take over. Suddenly, Tessa could breathe again.

She looked down, and gasped. Where her legs used to be instead was a tail!

It twitched in the water as she gazed at it, twisting her neck to discover a waving fin attached to the back. But where Will’s dorsal fin was triangular and spiked, Tessa’s was a softer shape -- more curved and rectangular.

Fascinated, she reached out to touch it. Her fin was made of strong membrane that felt tough under her hand. It was the same brilliant gold as her scales.

Tessa looked at her boys to find them staring at her in awe. Their expressions sent shivers through her. To be desired so much, by the two souls she cared for so much was almost overwhelming.

“You’re beautiful,” Will said, and kissed her fiercely.

Jem entwined the bottom of his tail with Tessa’s before drawing her close and kissing her too.

“Now I can safely admit that I’ve always thought human legs were ugly,” Will said, and Tessa laughed. He continued, “By the Angel, Tess, look at your tail! I’ve never seen one that color before! It’s beautiful.”

“It really is.” Jem said, “You can’t fight with it, I wouldn’t think. You’d stand out a mile away. That’s alright, though, there are Mer who aren’t warriors.”

“I could learn to fight,” Tessa said indignantly. “Maybe I could disguise it somehow.”

Startled, she touched her throat. She had meant to speak and had understood the words coming out of her mouth, but instead of the English she was expecting, a series of raspy grunts had come from her throat.

Her companions looked delighted.

“I guess Magnus threw in a little extra kick to that spell,” Jem said. “You can speak Mer, Tess!”

Will hugged her tightly. “I didn’t think it was going to work. By the Angel, Tessa, this is a miracle.”

Tessa had her own suspicions about why the potion had worked so strongly, but she kept them to herself for now. If Nate had indeed been telling the truth, then the success of her transformation was no miracle.

But there would be time to tell the boys later. For now, she held her tongue on the truths of her parentage and relished just being with Will and Jem.

“And you,” Will said, turning to Jem. “You’re still alive?”

Jem grinned at them. His eyes were bright again. “Still alive. In fact, I feel incredible.”

“Hm.” Will checked Jem over with his hands. The wound on his side had closed up, leaving only a small scar. His tail seemed fine, back to the light green it had always been.

“We should still get you looked at when we get back home, but you do seem good.” Will took Jem’s face in his hands. “Just as well. I wasn’t ready to live without you yet.”

Jem smiled and kissed him. “And you won’t have to. I will always be your _parabatai,_ William, but now only in spirit. The _parabatai_ bond has faded, look. The Clave can’t punish us for falling in love.”

Will smiled. “That’s convenient.”

“A gift from Raziel?” Tessa suggested.

Will scoffed. “A gift from Magnus Bane.”

“Magnus isn’t powerful enough for this,” Jem said. “Don’t bite the angelic hand that feeds you, William.”

“I suppose you’re right.” Will looked serious for a moment, then smirked. “I must remember to thank Raziel next time we have lunch.”

“ _Will,_ ” Tessa said, laughing.

 

It took time for Tessa to discover how to actually use her new tail. When Will and Jem swam back and forth it looked easy, but for Tessa it was decidedly not.

The first time she tried, she flapped her tail and rocketed backwards. The boys caught hold of her arms and pulled her back, unsuccessful at hiding their laughter.

After many failed tries, Tessa got the hang of moving forward. If she thought too much, she would end up losing control of her direction or drifting aimlessly in the sea. If she let her muscles take over, then suddenly her tail would start undulating beneath her, effortlessly swimming as if she had done it her whole life.

It would be a slow journey back to Will and Jem’s city, but they didn’t seem to mind. Instead, they entertained Tessa by telling stories of all the things she would see and do.

“Once we get home, I’m going to find you a bracelet of the most beautiful pearls,” Will bragged. He gestured to the jade pendant around Tessa’s neck. “Jem already gave you that, so I figure I’ve got to find some other kind of jewelry. You’ll see, the pearls humans own onland are nothing compared to what we have.”

“If you truly want to learn to fight, we could get you fitted for gear,” Jem said. “You’d be just learning, but you handled that fire poker pretty well. Blades and tridents aren’t that different.”

They went back and forth describing Mer life and Mer culture, warning her to be careful of the fey, explaining an elaborate shellfish dish that they ate on special occasions. Tessa was content just to listen to their excitement and enjoy the feeling of the water surrounding her.

 

“Will they accept me?” Tessa asked during one of the breaks. “The other Mer?”

They were above the surface, resting on a cluster of rocks. The warm rays of the sun were doing wonders for Tessa’s tired muscles, and Will and Jem were stretched out beside her.

“Of course,” Will said, blinking up at her. “The ones that matter, anyway. The Clave is filled with old buggers who might frown a little, but they can’t exactly send you back.”

“Besides, Charlotte is Consul now,” Jem reminded them. “She has sway over the Clave, and she’s going to love you, Tessa. I’ll bet she’ll take you into her home just like she did Will and I.”

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Will remarked. “Charlotte has a soft spot for strays, she used to be one herself. She’ll definitely insist that you stay with her, Tess.”

Tessa grinned at them, spirits lifted. “And her husband’s the inventor, right?”

“Right. Bit of an odd duck, but he means well. And he’s very smart.”

“And Jessamine is still with them,” Jem put in. “She’ll probably be glad to have another girl around. I’m sure she’ll force you to go shopping with her all the time.”

Will grimaced. “She used to make us do that. Angel bless you, Tessa.”

Tessa shooed away a curious seagull who tried to peck at her tail. “I can’t wait to meet them.”

They smiled at her.

“Oh, and you’ll have to meet my blood family! My parents will be thrilled that I’ve found a girl.” Will groaned suddenly. “God, we only lasted onland, what, three months? Cecily’s never going to stop laughing.”

Jem chuckled. “Do you feel up to swimming again, Tessa? The sooner we get home, the sooner we can watch Will get teased mercilessly by his younger sister.”

Tessa grinned and slipped into the water. “That is quite the incentive.”

“You are so cruel,” Will complained as he joined her. “Both of you. Why have I given my heart to such monsters?”

Jem dove off of the rock and splashed Will. “Ready?”

Will splashed Jem back and grinned. “Ready.”

Tessa looked at the pair of them and felt her heart swell. She nodded. “Ready.”

The three mermaids dove underwater. Side by side, they began to swim home.

 

**Author's Note:**

> You actually can play violin underwater! You should look it up, it sounds really cool. 
> 
> This story was inspired by angel_gidget's work "What The Waves Can't Provide" which you should check out if you liked this universe. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed! Come say hi on tumblr under the username bookwyrrm :)


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